The Electoral Commission has said it will release the list of presidential candidates who have qualified to contest in this year’s general elections next week. This comes after the commission on Friday [September 30], closed the window for the submission of completed nomination forms from persons interested in contesting in this year’s presidential election. A total of 17 presidential aspirants had submitted their forms on the deadline for submission of forms on Friday, September 30.
Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Charlotte Osei, told Citi News,
the Commission will soon start vetting of the forms to ensure they are in
compliance with the constitution and other subsidiary legislation.
“For the candidates who have met the requirements, their nominations will
be accepted, which will mean they will be on the ballot paper for the December
presidential elections,” she said. Charlotte Osei said the Commission will take
seven (7) days to vet all the forms before coming out with the final list of
qualified candidates.
“Next week, the Commission will come out with the official list of those
who have met the legal requirements to be candidates for this year’s
presidential and parliamentary elections,” she added.
At the end of the submission on Friday, 17 aspirants, including two
independent candidates, submitted their forms, although the EC was expecting 23
people.
‘PPP sues EC over ‘high’ filing fees’ The Progressive People’s Party (PPP),
led by Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom as the presidential nominee for the 2016 polls, sued
the Electoral Commission (EC) and government through the Attorney-General, over
the ‘high’ filing fees set by the Commission for presidential and parliamentary
hopefuls.
The EC on Thursday [September 29] refused to accept the filing fee of some
political parties including the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National
Democratic congress (NDC), when their flagbearers and representatives submitted
their forms.
The EC said it was temporary decision following a court injunction secured
by the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) over the filling fees. The Commission
however accepted the completed nomination forms of the various presidential
aspirants.
‘EC accepts PPP’s filing fees’ But in a rather interesting twist, the
Commission accepted the filing fee of the Progressive People’s Party’s (PPP)
flag-bearer despite an interlocutory injunction placed on the process by the
same party.
Dr. Nduom, who was represented by the party’s Chairman, Nii Allotey Brew
Hammond, subsequently requested that the filing fee be returned; but the EC
Chair, Charlotte Osei, said it was too late to return the fee as the PPP was
aware of the legal implications yet went ahead to present the fee in bank draft
form