Overcoming Nov 7 hurdles

The Electoral Commission (EC) declared in October 2015 that it planned to effect a historic change in Ghana's election timetable from December 7 to November 7. 

Without doubt, there is a compelling case for the EC to hold the elections a month earlier.

After six elections since 1992 and the hard lessons of the 2000 and 2008 elections, the usual December 7 date is no longer convenient, going into the seventh election this year.

The December 7 date has proved challenging, especially in election cycles where there are run-offs because no presidential candidate obtained the constitutionally required ‘50 per cent plus one vote’ to be validly elected as President.

This was the case in 2000 and 2008 when second rounds of voting were needed to determine the winner of the presidential polls.

In those cases, little time was left for the transition, which, by the dictates of the Constitution, has to be done on January 7. 

However, the EC is faced with an uphill task of implementing its widely accepted plan to move the election date a month forward.

With barely six months to the general election, the Majority and the Minority sides in Parliament have hinted that the process to ratify the change will be “elaborate”, “tedious”, “time-consuming” and long drawn.

This is because the amendment bill to change the date must be gazetted twice. After it is first gazetted, a period of three months is also required before the second gazette. 

Additionally, it will require 10 days after the second gazette for the bill to be presented to the Council of State for further scrutiny until it finally comes back to Parliament for the House to hold wide consultations with the public before casting a vote.

What makes the case dicey and difficult is that unlike other bills, this amendment bill needs a two-thirds majority before it can become law. It means if any side of the political divide has issues with the bill, the whole deal to change the date will be scuttled.

Thankfully, the EC has given an assurance that it has completed the necessary documentation to meet the November 7 election timetable and it is confident that the Attorney-General’s Department and Parliament will finalise the process of passing the bill.

Whatever the challenges, we think it is  time for all stakeholders to cooperate with the EC and not to take things for granted if the November 7 election plan is to hold.

The good thing is that there is a general consensus among stakeholders, including the political parties, that the change in the timetable is not only desirable but feasible. Nothing must, therefore, be done to scuttle the process.

With the limited time at hand, it is the view of the Daily Graphic that all hands must be on deck to quicken the process of legislating the proposal to meet this constitutional obligation.

In doing so, the Daily Graphic appeals to all and sundry that when amending the Constitution, the parties must put partisanship aside and think about the nation first.

Going forward, the EC must also position itself as a consensus builder and bring all stakeholders on board, since it is only through that that it could win the confidence and trust of  all the political parties for credible, free and transparent elections.