All parties were consulted about electronic transmission - EC

The Electoral Commission has insisted that all parties were consulted before it announced the Electronic Results Transmission System (ERTS) for the 2016 Elections.

The Commission in a statement issued on Monday evening said, the new results transmission system was part of several reform proposals made by the Electoral Reform Committee which it set up after the 2013 Supreme Court judgment on the Presidential Election Petition.

Members of the Committee were, Ms. Georgina Opoku Amankwaa, Deputy Chairperson (EC), Mrs. Rebecca Kabukie Adjalo (Member, EC), Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah (NDC), Mr. Kwabena Agyei Agyepong (NPP), Mr. James Kwabena Bomfeh Jnr (CPP), Mr. Anin-Kofi Addo (YPP), Dr. Ransford Gyampo (IEA), Mr. Kwesi Jonah (IDEG) and Dr. Franklin Oduro (CDD-Ghana).

However, the opposition, New Patriotic Party has denied being involved in the process. Their Campaign Manager, Mr Peter Mac Manu insists that the EC failed to invite any of the political parties to attend the demonstration of the new system by the five companies shortlisted for the contract.  

The Commission in a response to Mr Manu's comments said, the NPP Campaign Manager was a member of the Legal Committee of IPAC and was intimately and significantly involved in the drafting of the two important regulations C.I.91 and C.I.94 (which regulate registration of voters and the elections). 

The Commission also argued that Mr. Manu had ample opportunity to raise the issue of the inclusion of the ERTS in the law either at IPAC, or the Legal Committee of IPAC where the law was drafted; or even before the subsidiary legislation committee of Parliament.

The statement signed by the EC's Head of Communications, Mr Eric Kofi Dzakpasu said, "The Commission has taken note of Mr. Manu’s public comments about the agreed results transmission process, especially the legality of the said system. We however wish to point out that Mr. Manu was a member of the Legal Committee of IPAC and was intimately and significantly involved in the drafting of the two important regulations C.I.91 and C.I.94 (which regulate registration of voters and the elections).

"Mr. Manu also appeared before the parliamentary committee for Subsidiary Legislation chaired by Osei Bonsu Amoah. The latter is also a regular representative of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) at IPAC.

"In the view of the Commission, Mr. Manu had ample opportunity to raise the issue of the inclusion of the ERTS in the law either at IPAC, or the Legal Committee of IPAC where the law was drafted; or even before the subsidiary legislation committee of Parliament.

"As a matter of fact, the results transmitted through the ERTS would remain provisional and since they do not replace the manual results process captured in the Law, in the view of the EC, the legal committee of IPAC, and IPAC, there was no need to capture the process in the law".

The EC also noted that the ERTS remains provisional as it continues to engage the parties on all our processes leading up to the 2016 elections.