Parties agree on Nov 7, but question readiness of EC
Participants in a forum organised by Parliament to discuss the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill, 2016 have all agreed with moves to change the day for presidential and parliamentary elections from December 7 to the first Monday of November in an election year.
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They agreed that the proposed day would reduce, if not eliminate, the acrimony that usually characterises transitions from one government to another.
Some, particularly members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), however, questioned the ability of the Electoral Commission (EC) to hold elections a month earlier than the usual date, considering the myriad of problems the commission needed to address before polling day.
Others were also of the view that the law could be passed this year but its implementation should be deferred until after this year's elections.
Is EC really ready?
Making a submission before the Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs yesterday, the Campaign Manager and former National Chairman of the NPP, Mr Peter Mac Manu, said Constitutional Instrument (CI) 75 which needed to be amended to govern the elections was still not before the House.
He said even if the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill was passed, there would be the need for another CI which would also be in the House for another 21 sitting days.
"Are we ready for that?" he asked.
He said CI 91 demanded that political parties be furnished with copies of the electoral register by the EC and yet that had not been done.
He said the current register had names which needed to be deleted, adding that the deletion might give rise to some legal tussles that might further delay the process of compiling a final register.
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Apart from that, he said, there was the issue of proxy voting, special voting and voter transfer, all of which, as he spoke, had not been dealt with.
Another pertinent issue, he argued, was funds and logistics for the EC and the transportation of electoral materials to polling stations in time for the conduct of elections.
All the issues he had enumerated, in his view, posed serious challenges to the EC and he wondered how the EC could address all of them within this short period and still be ready to hold elections on the first Monday in November.
"But we are ready for elections any day, any time," he said, but urged the committee and the nation as a whole to carefully consider the issues he had raised.
The forum
Apart from officials of the NPP, the forum was attended by bigwigs of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the Progressive People's Party (PPP), the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD), the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), the Christian Council of Ghana, the Coalition for Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), officials from the Office of the National Chief Imam, among many other organisations.
It was to collect and collate views on the Constitutional Amendment Bill currently before Parliament.
NDC's views
The General Secretary of the NDC, Mr Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, said the NDC was committed to any position adopted by the country, so long as it was by consensus.
"We do not think there is any gain or disadvantage if it is adopted or rejected. So we will go along with the position of the lawmakers," he said.
He recalled the acrimony which had characterised transitions in the country and added that debates at the forum of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), had led to the identification of "democratic deficits " in the system which needed to be addressed.
That, he said, led to the crafting of the Presidential Transitions Bill, out of which the need to change the date for the holding of elections had emerged.
"I see the amendment as something the EC and the nation have agreed upon and we are in full support. But if the House decides that it cannot go along with it, it will neither advance or negatively affect our political fortunes. We just want to build concensus. The NDC has come with an open mind. We do not have any fixed position on what the MPs seek to do," he said.
Other political parties
The representative of the PPP said the party had already programmed its activities in line with the new date.
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To revert to December 7, he said, would result in some financial implications for the party.
He urged Parliament to go ahead with the plan, saying it was in the national interest.
He was, however, quick to add that the party would have no choice but go along with whatever decision Parliament took on the matter.
The National Women's Organiser of the National Democratic Party (NDP), Ms Peace Ayi, called for the passage of the law but a deferment of its implementation.
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She said the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) and the EC had not yet agreed on the modalities of ridding the electoral roll of minors, the deceased, as well as people who registered with National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) cards.
She said there could be disagreements on modalities for removing the names which could drag on for weeks and make the November date too close.
CSOs
The Head of Research and Deputy Director of the CDD, Mr Franklin Oduro, said in principle, the organisation was not opposed to the new date.
He, however, wondered if the EC was ready to carry out elections earlier than December 7.
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He said the court cases and the numerous activities planned by the EC for the rest of the year made him wonder if the commission could actually organise elections in November.
In his view, the EC needed to state clearly whether it was in a position to organise elections in November or not.
A representative of IDEG, Mr Kwesi Jonah, expressed sentiments quite similar to those expressed by Mr Oduro and asked for the deferment of the implementation if the nation agreed.
The President of the GJA, Mr Affail Monney, said the organisation had no problem with any of the dates.
What it was concerned about, he said, was the protection of journalists in the course of their work on election day.
He called for adequate security for members of the inky fraternity on election day.
An official of CODEO, Mr Albert Arhin, supported the amendment of the 1992 Constitution but said the committee needed to invite the EC for a discussion on the matter.
Other people who supported the amendment were M.G. Muhammed of the Office of the National Chief Imam and Rev. Dr Opuni Frimpong, the General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana.
Fact sheet
Article 112 (4), which needs to be amended to enable the EC to conduct elections on the first Monday in November in an election year, is not an entrenched clause.