CENAB RAISES ALARM OVER EC CONDUCT

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Tuesday, January 05, 2016

The United Kingdom branch of the Coalition to Elect Nana Addo & Bawumia (CENAB) - an advocacy group - says the Electoral Commission (EC) is likely to plunge Ghana into chaos as it prepares to organize this year’s crucial general election.

According to CENAB-UK, it has “reasonable cause to believe that the Electoral Commission of Ghana is doing everything in its power to rig election 2016 in favour of the ruling government, and thereby plunge Ghana into total chaos in the aftermath of the 2016 elections.”

Modus Operandi

A statement issued from London and jointly signed by three CENAB advocates - Kwasi Atta-Krufi Hayford, Peter Antwi-Boasiako and Adreba Abrefa Damoa – claimed, “The modus operandi is made manifest from the conduct of the EC since the beginning of 2015, and especially since Mrs Charlotte Osei, the new EC boss, was appointed.”

According to the group, the appointment of Mrs Charlotte Osei “has paved way for the EC to complete its plans to rig election 2016, and all statements issued by the EC and its actions since the beginning of 2015 have been in furtherance to it.”

EC’s Admonition

“The recent statement by Mrs Osei, admonishing Ghanaians to safeguard the peace and stability Ghana is enjoying now, and must not allow politics to derail it, if fully analysed, is the clearest indication that her outfit is preparing the minds of Ghanaians to retain John Mahama as the president of Ghana after the 2016 elections.”

Members of the group said they saw the EC boss’ statement “as bothering on sentimental instincts, which is being used as reverse psychology on Ghanaians to further their hidden nefarious plans.”

Instances

“CENAB-UK has cited instances of the EC’s resolve in its determination to rig election 2016, as including the following: The EC’s manipulation of the 5-man committee report. The facade of the recent EC public forum and branding the call for a new register as likely to cause insecurity in Ghana and the EC’s refusal to implement the Abu Ramadan’s Supreme Court verdict.”

They further said that “the presentation of the EC budget to Parliament at a time when there were outstanding issues on election 2016; the EC’s refusal to cooperate with the IEA in finding the way forward for Election 2016; the declaration of the EC premises as security area and banning demonstrations there; the EC boycott of the lecture of Professor Attahiru Jega, the former chairman of INEC Nigeria and finally the EC’s refusal to investigate the charges by the NPP that the Ghana voter register is fraught with cross-border registrants, need not to be taken for granted.”

Parliament Queried

CENAB-UK questioned why parliament accepted without question the budget proposal by the EC at a time the 5-member committee report was still outstanding.

The group also expressed concern as to why the EC had allegedly refused “to make known to the public the full report as submitted by the 5-member committee until the 7^th of January 2016” saying, “this is because the EC is manipulating it to suit the wishes of both the EC and the NDC government.”

It noted,“Mrs Osei is truly singing her master's voice, and heading the nation in only one direction - electoral disaster.”