EC likely to brief Parliament on 2020 election on June 9 — Majority Leader

The Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, last Friday told Parliament that the Electoral Commission (EC) was likely to appear before Parliament on June 9, this year, to brief lawmakers on its activities for the 2020 general election.

He stated that while the EC had suggested June 16 as the date it would want to come to the House to discharge such a mandate, he pressed the commissioners to do so on June 9, given the urgent calls from legislators to know its elections activities this year.

“The commissioners have programmes in the various regions to undertake some assignments and they have given an indication that they will be back to Accra on June 15, and accordingly will be able to avail themselves on June 16,” he said.

Strong urging

“I thought that will be too distant a date from now given the issues that are coming up for consideration,” Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, said in response to a question from the Minority Chief Whip, Mr Mubarak Mohammed Muntaka, on when the Chairperson of the EC would come to the House to update members on the programmes of the EC.

“So I am strongly urging them to avail themselves on June 9, a week before their own declared date to be available in the House; we have not been able to sort it out yet even though I am pressing,” he stated.

“We have not been able to sort it out even though I am still pressing that they should be here on that day and I believe by Tuesday I should be able to tell the Business Committee whether I have obtained success or not,” he stated.

Question

Mr Muntaka had told the House that while the Majority Leader had been given the assurance that Mrs Jean Mensa would appear before the House last week, the business statement of last Friday did not make provision for the EC Chairperson to come to the House.

He, therefore, asked when it might be possible for the Electoral Commissioner to appear before the House to brief lawmakers on the activities of the EC.

Previous assurance

On May 22, Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu told the House that the EC was to brief Parliament the week earlier on measures it was taking to conduct the general election.

He stated that he had engaged members of the commission on Thursday, May 21, and they assured him that they would get back to him by close of Friday, May 22, on when they would come to Parliament to update legislators on preparations towards the elections.