Former Attorney General, Mr. Martin Amidu, has described the Electoral Commission\u2019s (EC) decision to disqualify Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom and 12 other presidential candidates as a deliberate attempt to rig the election in favour of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).<\/p>\n
The EC disqualified some 13 presidential candidates, including Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom of the Progressive People\u2019s Party, Edward Mahama of the People\u2019s National Convention and Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings of the National Democratic Party (NDP) \u00a0among others, after it identified some mistakes on their nomination forms.<\/p>\n
[contextly_sidebar id=”9hRkgHQtEm4QhVbI60fZSdJXrGGJAVfG”]Dr. Nduom\u2019s chances of appearing on the ballot were however raised on Friday after an Accra High Court ordered the EC to allow him<\/strong><\/span><\/a> to amend the errors on his forms and resubmit them for consideration by the EC.<\/p>\n But the EC subsequently said on Monday that it has initiated processes at the Supreme Court to quash last Friday\u2019s High Court judgment on the disqualification of Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom.<\/p>\n Despite these developments, the EC has categorically stated that it is prepared for the upcoming elections.<\/p>\n According to the Commission, despite the many lawsuits it has been saddled with ahead of the elections, it is on course with arrangements to hold successful polls.<\/p>\n But Martin Amidu in a statement argued that “there can be no free, transparent and fair elections when any of the disqualified aspiring candidates and any political party sponsoring them have their names added to the ballot more than three weeks belatedly, because the Commissioner\u2019s preferred and approved candidates would have had an unequal advantage over them in the contest for the Presidency.”<\/p>\n “Nobody can convince such candidates, their political parties, and supporters and the objective observer that they had a level playing field for the 7th<\/sup> December 2016 elections within the letter and spirit of the constitution. \u00a0The Commissioner has effectively rigged the election from day one against them.I have already said elsewhere that this Commissioner was appointed with a rigging agenda. Let us as citizens defend the Constitution by watching her every step during this election,”Martin Amidu added in his statement.<\/p>\n The statement from Martin Amidu is below\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n THE INEXPERIENCE, INCOMPETENCE AND ARROGANCE OF THE ELECTORAL COMMISSIONER IS BECOMING DANGEROUS \u2013 MARTIN A. B. K. AMIDU<\/p>\n The Electoral Commissioner does not appear to understand that the letter and spirit of the 1992 Constitution on the representation of the people enjoins her to ensure that every political party and its aspiring presidential candidate or an individual aspirant has equal time and opportunity to canvass for the votes of the electorate.<\/p>\n This is why the statement made on behalf of the Commissioner and \u00a0published on myjoyonline of 2nd<\/sup> November 2016 stating that the Commissioner \u201cwill be able to pull off successful parliamentary on (sic) presidential elections on December 7 notwithstanding law suits threatening the process\u201d demonstrates once more the incompetence, inexperience and utter lack of understanding of the letter and the spirit of the 1992 Constitution mandating the Commissioner to supervise the organization of a free, transparent and fair multiparty Presidential Elections.<\/p>\n The election date of 7th<\/sup> December 2016 is just about a month away and the Commissioner has the impudence to tell citizen voters that she is capable of conducting the elections within two weeks forgetting that her pride, intransigence and arrogance are already depriving the aspiring candidates of political parties and others who may eventually qualify to be on the ballot of their constitutional right to equal opportunity and time to canvass the electorate for their votes before the elections.<\/p>\n Printing ballot papers for the presidential election means nothing to the rights of a political party and its candidate or individual aspiring candidates and their supporters who might have been deprived of an equal, fair and transparent right to participate in the electioneering campaign \u201cintended to influence the composition and policies of the Government\u201d to be elected.<\/p>\n Every citizen has a fundamental guaranteed right to join a political party and to participate freely with that political party in shaping the political will of the people, to disseminate information on political ideas and other programmes and to sponsor candidates to the office of the President of Ghana. Such a guaranteed right is rendered nugatory and pointless when candidates have only two weeks to canvass the electorate for support for the elections on 7th<\/sup> December 2016.<\/p>\n There can be no free, transparent and fair elections when any of the disqualified aspiring candidates and any political party sponsoring them have their names added to the ballot more than three weeks belatedly, because the Commissioner\u2019s preferred and approved candidates would have had an unequal advantage over them in the contest for the Presidency. Nobody can convince such candidates, their political parties, and supporters and the objective observer that they had a level playing field for the 7th<\/sup> December 2016 elections within the letter and spirit of the constitution. \u00a0The Commissioner has effectively rigged the election from day one against them.<\/p>\n I have already said elsewhere that this Commissioner was appointed with a rigging agenda. Let us as citizens defend the Constitution by watching her every step during this election.<\/p>\n Martin A. B. K. Amidu<\/p>\n 2nd<\/sup> November 2016<\/p>\n –<\/p>\n By: Marian Ansah\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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