Freddie Blay, the first national vice chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has rebuked the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for criticizing proposals to appointment a new chairman of the Electoral Commission (EC).<\/p>\n
Johnson Asiedu Nketia on Wednesday chastised the Ghana Bar Association (GBA)<\/strong> <\/span><\/a>for suggesting to the President to appoint new EC boss who can salvage the sinking image of the Commission.<\/p>\n He described the suggestion as unsolicited<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, claiming that it was aimed at \u201cthrowing dust into the eyes of Ghanaians.\u201d<\/p>\n [contextly_sidebar id=”Kno40KpIZ6ZdB72T1FBwLH83hk0TJT4q”]But Freddie Blay told Citi News<\/strong>, the attack on the GBA was unwarranted, accusing Asiedu\u00a0Nketia of being paranoid.<\/p>\n Freddie Blay likened the NDC\u2019s General Secretary\u2019s response to a situation \u201cwhen you mention old bones then old women want to shiver.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAsiedu Nketia\u2019s position on the matter is very surprising. Why should the Bar not advice?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n He said the EC\u2019s handling of the last elections was \u201cquestionable and a lot of things were left undone\u201d therefore, the GBA is \u201cadvising so that even if no laws can be made immediately, they are pleading with the President that this time round go for somebody who will be acceptable, knowledgeable and very objective.\u201d<\/p>\n The NPP accused the EC of being in bed with the ruling government when they challenged the outcome of the 2012 general elections at the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n On his part, the General Secretary of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP), Kofi Asamoah-Siaw welcomed the call from the lawyers.<\/span><\/p>\n He was however quick to add that the party doubts the President will be able to appoint a new EC chairman, who will be accepted by all.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a very good call but the difficulty we have is we don\u2019t believe President Mahama will do something that the GBA is calling for; somebody who will bring integrity, somebody who will bring a sense of urgency as far as electoral reforms are concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Asamoah-Siaw added that the EC will be deemed credible if it carries out the needed electoral reforms.<\/p>\n According to him, the current posturing of the outgoing EC chairman, Dr. Afari Gyan, is a great source of worry to the PPP because \u201che is not responding to the numerous calls for immediate electoral reforms.\u201d<\/p>\n He insisted that if the electoral reforms do not begin immediately before Dr Afari Gyan\u2019s retirement in 2015, then the nation has lost the opportunity to embark on electoral reforms that is going to promote effective electoral administration in Ghana.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n By: Efua Idan Osam\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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