The Electoral Commission (EC) has responded to allegations made by former President John Dramani Mahama regarding the neutrality of the EC’s biased recruitment of Returning Officers for the 2024 polls.
The former President, In a recent interview at the London School of Economics and Political Science, has accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government of appointing its members to the EC.
Mr. Mahama raised concerns about the EC’s impartiality in the upcoming elections claiming that the election management body had requested MPs and DCEs to disclose the names of NPP members during the recruitment of Returning Officers and their deputies.
Fred Tetteh, the Deputy Director of Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation, debunked these claims in a statement dated April 25, clarifying that appointments are made according to constitutional provisions and denied claims of political bias in appointments. He criticised Mahama for condemning a practice he had employed during his term.
Regarding the recruitment of returning officers, the EC emphasized a transparent process, refuting allegations of favoritism towards political party affiliates.
“Per the attached public announcement, the Commission invited ALL interested Ghanaians to apply for the positions of Returning Officers and Deputy Returning Officers. The allegation by former President Mahama that Ministers and DCEs were asked “to write the names of party apparatchiks and present them so that they would be appointed as the returning officers” IS NOT TRUE.
“The Commission rejects this unfounded allegation coming from the former President. The process of recruiting Returning Officers and their Deputies was conducted in an open, fair and transparent manner. Following the publication of the vacancy announcement in the Daily Graphic on the 5th of February 2024, the Commission received a total of 20,561 applications.
“An in-house Committee was established to shortlist suitable applicants to be interviewed. For the information of the general public, all successful applicants at the interview have no less than 8 years of working experience with the Commission as Temporal Election Officials.”
The Commission emphasized the importance of accurate and responsible communication during the election year and reiterated their commitment to conducting transparent, credible, and fair elections in Ghana.
Find attached EC’s response
