The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) is reeling after its Elections Dispute Adjudication Committee (EDAC) annulled the results of the June 30 Ashanti Regional Chairperson elections, mandating a fresh ballot within fourteen working days.
The decision, stemming from a formal petition, cites critical irregularities” that EDAC asserts could have decisively swayed the outcome.
After weeks of intense deliberation, EDAC concluded that the irregularities, which included the unauthorised inclusion of voters and a blatant breach of GJA constitutional provisions, were substantial enough to shatter the credibility of the initial polls.
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“In the interest of fairness and to restore the confidence of our members, we have resolved that the elections must be re-run,” declared a joint statement from Chairperson Rebecca Quaicoe-Duho, Secretary Benjamin Bano-Bioh, and Technical Advisor Zakaria Tanko.
The Committee stressed the unconstitutional generation of a supplementary voters list on election day itself. It noted, “The eligibility of some individuals on this list was contested, and one voter registered in Greater Accra was nonetheless permitted to vote in the Ashanti Region.”
Given that the final result was decided by a razor-thin margin of just one vote, EDAC stressed that even minor anomalies possessed the power to significantly alter the outcome. “The extremely narrow margin makes it a reasonable proposition that the anomalies identified could have had a material effect on the result,” the Committee said.
In a bid to safeguard the integrity of the upcoming re-run, EDAC has issued stringent directives to the GJA Elections Committee:
- A complete list of eligible voters must be publicly gazetted in national newspapers and provided to all contestants at least three clear working days before the vote.
- No supplementary voters list will be permitted or accepted under any circumstances.
“We urge all members to take a keen interest in the implementation of these directives to ensure that the re-run elections are conducted with the utmost integrity,” the Committee added.
EDAC has committed to releasing a comprehensive report detailing its findings, rationale, and further recommendations to the GJA Secretariat and the public in due course, promising full transparency in this contentious electoral process.