Election 2020 presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama, has called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to set up a neutral body to review the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections for reforms to enhance transparency, credibility and acceptability of future elections.
He pointed out that the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections were the worst organised elections in the democratic history of the country because many issues went wrong including Military invasion of collation centres and forced electoral officers to declare results.
“This is one of the worst ever elections we have had in the country. I have not witnessed any election after printing ballot papers, another one million extra ballot papers were printed,” former President Mahama bemoaned.
Addressing separate meetings of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs and the clergy in Koforidua as part of his ‘thank you’ tour to the region on October 12, 2021, the former President Mahama urged traditional authorities and the clergy to add their voices for review of the 2020 elections for reforms.
Former President Mahama disclosed that the NDC had identified some of the loopholes that made it possible for some of the issues that happened and were taking steps to ensure they did not happen again hence proposals for electoral reforms which had been presented to authorities.
He intimated that in most cases after elections, EC took steps to set up a panel to look at issues that went wrong and came out with proposals to ensure they were corrected and expected the current Commission to do same.
Former President Mahama insisted that a neutral body must be set up for the electoral reforms, respectable people to oversee proposals submitted and build consensus needed to make the nation’s elections better.
“That is why we have engaged institutions, civil society organisations, traditional rulers, religious leaders among others so that we all speak with one voice to allow processes to happen towards our elections to become better than what happened in the past.
“We call on other stakeholders to mount pressure on the government to investigate the killing of eight innocent people during the 2020 elections and perpetrators brought to book to avert impunity in future because we have held elections since 1992 till date and never seen an election with our compatriots participating in the electoral processes,” former President Mahama decried. –starrfm.com.gh