NCCE wants voting period reviewed

Political page jan 12/01/08

Story: Charles Benoni Okine

THE National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has called for a review of the voting period of the general election in the country.
It said instead of the normal 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Electoral Commission (EC) could push the polling period to between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. because “it is our belief that the incidence of threats to peace due to problems created in the counting and collating of election results in the night may be prevented”.
At news conference in Accra yesterday, the Deputy Chairman of the NCCE, Mrs Augustina Akosua Akumanyi, said there were many areas in the country that did not have lighting systems and counting and collating the results in broad daylight would be of immense benefit to all parties involved.
She said the EC was the leading institution for conducting and supervising elections, adding, “This leadership role enjoin it to work efficiently with its key collaborators such as the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) to consult on all major decisions concerning elections.”
Mrs Akumanyi said much as the NCCE was confident about the EC’s ability and competence to conduct credible elections, there were some issues the NCCE needed to bring to the attention of the EC.
She said the commission needed to ensure that all temporary staff to be engaged to assist with election duties were people of unquestionable character and must be well versed in the rules and regulations governing elections.
“Also of concern is the timely declaration of the election results. We also hope the EC in their voter education exercise would place emphasis on proper thumbprinting on the ballot paper to reduce the incidence of spoilt ballots,” Mrs Akumanyi said.
She expressed the hope that the EC, in revising, updating and undertaking transfers on the voter’s register, would ensure that people did not take political advantage of the process.
Turning to the IPAC, Mrs Akumanyi asked the committee to assist the EC with ideas that went beyond the parochial interests of political party representatives on the committee and place Ghana first in all their deliberations.
“We propose that the IPAC be replicated in all the regions and districts of the country,” she said, adding that “this will ensure that any disagreements would be nipped in the bud as early as possible”.
Mrs Akumanyi said the President as the father of the nation, should demonstrate fairness for all in his actions and speeches.
“The President has to prepare the grounds for a smooth handover to the candidate who would be declared winner by the Electoral Commission in December 2008,” she said.
To the candidates, the NCCE Deputy Chairman entreated all the candidates who were aspiring to be elected to leadership positions to use inspiring language and avoid utterances that would inflame passions.
Mrs Akumanyi said the candidates needed to prevail upon their followers to obey the electoral regulations, adding that “party supporters should be civil in their relationship with their competitors”.
She said candidates needed to dispel that notion that the 2008 elections was a matter of life and death, and should stop nurturing the desire to win at all cost.
“All the political parties should be prevailed upon to engage people who are truly committed to their parties and are knowledgeable enough to serve as polling agents,” she said.
Mrs Akumanyi said it was necessary for all the security agencies to demonstrate non-partisan stance and neutrality before, during and after the elections.
“The credibility of the December 2008 elections will also greatly depend on the way the security agencies conduct themselves throughout the period of the elections,” she said.
She recognised the role the media had played in the past during such crucial national elections and urged it on in the coming general election.
Mrs Akumanyi, however, asked the media to be mindful that the dissemination of uncertified election results and other unconfirmed information about elections could create confusion and chaos in society.
She also asked the media to ensure equity and fairness to all parties by giving each of them a balanced coverage.
Mrs Akumanyi asked religious bodies, traditional rulers and pressure groups to also play a positive role in ensuring that the country went through peaceful elections.