EC to crack whip on moribund parties ; As Odike’s party gets provisional certificate
The Electoral Commission (EC) has signalled its intention to crack the whip on all registered political parties that do not observe the regulations governing political party activities in the country.
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This is because the EC has observed that a host of the political parties exist only by name and have no offices in the regions and districts.
Most of them have also failed to present their audited accounts to the commission as required by the law governing political parties.
The commission made this known when it presented a provisional certificate to the United Progressives Party (UPP) at a ceremony at the EC headquarters in Accra yesterday.
Currently, the EC has 23 registered political parties in its statute. When the UPP is finally presented with its final certificate within 30 days, the number will be 24 registered parties on EC records.
Provisional certificate
Mrs Georgina Opoku Amankwaa, a Deputy Commissioner of EC in charge of finance and administration, who gave the warning when she presented the provisional certificate of registration to the UPP, said the registration of a political party, which is a process, was not a big deal but what was important was the sustainability of the political party to become vibrant and contribute to the democratic dispensation of the country.
She, therefore, disclosed that the EC and the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) were working closely to discourage splinter political parties by cracking the whip on those who could not fulfil the Political Parties Act 2000 and Act 574 section 8 subsection 2.
She explained that these acts dealt with slogans, colours and symbols of political parties as well as their audited accounts, which the EC had not had the opportunity to enforce, partly because of financial constraints that had bedevilled the commission in the past.
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Mr Amadu Sulley, Deputy Commissioner of EC in charge of Operations, said the issue of a provisional certificate of registration was not a licence for the party to embark on canvassing for votes as well as presenting a candidate for election until the EC had completed its investigations and issued the party with a final certificate.
He said the EC would examine the colours, slogans and symbols of the party to make sure they did not clash with the colours of other political parties as well as check on the list of founder members in every district to make sure the information provided by the party was accurate before it is issued with a final certificate within 30 days.
Appreciation
Mr Akwasi Addai, popularly called Odike, Founder and National Chairman of the UPP, expressed appreciation to the EC for the good work done and promised to abide by the tenets of democracy and adhere to the electoral rules of the country.
He said the UPP aimed at entrenching democracy and offering alternative to good governance in the country.
Background
Mr Addai, who was the 2012 flag bearer of the United Front Party (UFP), abandoned the party to form the new party, the UPP.
The UPP, with social democratic underpinnings, is expected to be launched this month to wrest political power in the 2016 election.
The UPP has a clock as its symbol and “Yemere Nie” ( This is Our Time) as its slogan.
The formation of the UPP comes after many months of deep rift in the UFP between Mr Addai and the Founder of the UFP, Nana Agyenim Boateng, better known as Gyataba.