The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has expressed
grave concern about the Electoral Commission (EC)’s handling of processes for
the electronic transmission of the December 7 election results.Acting
National Chairman of the NPP, Freddie Blay says the Commission has not been
transparent with the arrangements despite the major role political parties play
in the election process.
“Indeed we are not happy [because] it is one of
the issues that we addressed that all [things] being equal in this modern age
e-transmission of the results should be the order of the day but it should not
be done as if it’s administrative,” he said.
The NPP had urged
transparency in the arrangements put in place by the Commission to sublet the
e-transmission of the December 7 election results to a private
company.
NPP Campaign Manager, Peter Mac Manu had told Joy News on August
2 that the Commission failed to invite political parties to attend a meeting
scheduled for the five shortlisted companies to demonstrate their
systems.
“First, there is no law which gives the EC the mandate to
electronically transmit results. Nothing in the law before Parliament now,
C.I.94 makes mention of it,” he said then.
The Commission later
discontinued the procurement process for the Election Results Management System
(ERMS) citing the failure of the companies to “meet the technical criteria and
major deviations from the administrative criteria.”
Mr Blay said the
Commission should have involved the parties if it is interested in protecting
the sanctity of the process. “What is the integrity of it all?” he asked, saying
the NPP “won’t leave anything to EC alone.”
Notwithstanding, he said the
NPP will “make sure that there will be a fair election and the result will be
what Ghanaians want it to be and not what some of the people, officials and
non-officials want.”
Reacting to the issue on the Joy FM’s Midday news
programme Monday, EC’s Communications Director, Eric Dzakpasu explained despite
the discontinuation of the procurement process, the Commission will still go
ahead with the electronic transmitting of the results.
He said the system
the Commission would use was piloted in four by-elections held this year and
would be demonstrated to the political parties at the appropriate time in order
to allay their fears.
Despite the NPP’s claim of non-involvement, Mr
Dzakpasu said the Commission has been open with all the political parties from
the beginning when the decision was taken at the Inter-Party Advisory Committee
(IPAC) meeting, stressing nothing is shrouded in secrecy. |
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