President-elect John Dramani Mahama has asked the Electoral Commission (EC) to demonstrate fairness, consistency, and integrity in its decisions.
He has specifically admonished them to exercise fairness in the matters relating to the 9 constituencies where the parliamentary results are being disputed.
The affected constituencies include Ablekuma North, Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Techiman South, and Dome-Kwabenya, among others.
Chairperson of the EC Madam Jean Mensa, in explaining why the results have been cancelled, claimed the officers of the EC were forced to declare.
But Mr. Mahama accused the EC of engaging in selective application of rules.
He recounted the incident that occurred during the 2020 general elections, where the EC declared the parliamentary results despite reported irregularities and objections from stakeholders.
Speaking to African ambassadors and high commissioners on Friday, December 20, Mahama said, “The few outstanding issues arising from the elections where nine constituencies are in dispute, and we think that the EC should act in a principled manner.
“You cannot change the rules when it suits you and apply different rules when different circumstances exist. There was a particular case in 2020, and the EC came out clearly that if a declaration had been made, it was not the duty of the commission to adjudicate it, and the court was the right place to go.
“So, if a declaration has been made, it doesn’t matter under what circumstance; they are saying some are under duress. In the case of Techiman South, it was under duress with soldiers in the collation room. There was chaos in the collation when the declaration was made.
“The same arguments were passed that there should be a re-collation, and the EC said no… In the same circumstances, declarations have been made. If the people have any grievances, they must go to court and address those grievances there.
“We don’t think the goalpost should be shifted depending on who is at the other end of the stick. We think that there must be fairness and justice in everything we do.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
