Ghana held its District Level Elections yesterday, December 19 2023 across 6,215 electoral areas spread among the 261 metropolitan, municipal, and district assemblies (MMDAs).
This follows the expiration of the term of the Assembly and Unit Committee Members on December 17, 2023.
However, in rather a bizarre turn of events, the election in several districts in the Eastern and Ashanti regions were postponed by the Electoral Commission in a release at noon of the polls, due to technical challenges such as the shortage of ballot papers on the part of the Commission.
There are also reports that the election did not take place in some district assemblies in the Central Region, owing to the same challenges.
In the Eastern Region for instance, only sixteen district assemblies out of the thirty-three were able to partake in the electoral process on Tuesday due to the failure of the Electoral Commission to make available electoral materials in the respective assemblies as required.
While the Electoral Commission’s official starting time was supposed to begin at 7:00 am, reports revealed that at about 10:50 am the Electoral Commission’s materials had not arrived for voting to start despite EC officials being ready.
In the New Juaben South district in the Eastern Region for instance report indicated that the late arrival of voting materials left many voters who had turned out to vote frustrated in various polling stations.
The Member of Parliament for Odododiodio Constituency Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye chastised the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Madam Jean Mensa for failing to discharge her mandate as required by the 1992 Constitution.
The former Minister of Youth and Sports strongly asserted that the events of yesterday indicate that the Electoral Commission did not plan sufficiently enough for this year’s December 19 2023 district-level elections and cannot be pardoned for its negligence.
“I will not give any excuses for the EC’s lack of preparedness. The EC was inefficient and ineffective in this particular election. We must call a spade a spade. The EC has two years to prepare for district-level elections because they happen in between the major national elections. After the 2020 election, the EC knew that they would have district-level elections this year. In all these instances and times, what has been the preparation towards this district-level election?”
Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye
The Odododiodio legislator claimed that the district-level election was supposed to take place in August but was moved to September, and then a new date was announced in December, hence he cannot fathom why the Electoral Commission would be unable to provide a seamless process following many delays and a two-year preparatory period.
EC Urged To Adequately Prepare For 2024 General Elections
However, Mr Vanderpuye admonished the Electoral Commission to adequately plan ahead of the the 2024 general elections to avoid a repetition of yesterday’s lapses.
He reaffirmed the Electoral Commission’s obligation to sufficiently prepare for all elections, including the district-level election, which is essential to the effective running of the country’s local government system.
It is worth noting that, the postponement of the election in most districts of the Ashanti and Eastern Region has had some dire financial consequences on the various assembly members’ and unit committee members’ aspirants in the affected areas who are the key stakeholders of the district-level elections.
It is also without doubt that such an unfortunate blunder from the Electoral Commission will further dim the voter turnout in Thursday’s December 21, 2023, rescheduled date.
As reiterated by many well-meaning Ghanaians including the former Deputy Minister of Local Government, Decentralization & Rural Development, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye, the Electoral Commission must exhibit urgency and proactiveness to ensure its offers Ghanaians a seamless electoral process in the 2024 general election and other future elections.
The stakes in the 2024 general elections are too high for the routine business-as-usual conduct of the Electoral Commission.
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