EC set for Akwatia by-election — Eastern Regional Director
The Electoral Commission (EC) has deployed 484 electoral officers to the 119 polling stations across the Akwatia Constituency for today’s parliamentary by-election.
Complemented by the over 5,000 police personnel deployed for the day’s exercise in the Eastern Region mining town, logistical and security arrangements by the EC and the police were worked out well in advance, given the high stakes in the poll.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) is presenting a 40-year-old licensed small-scale gold miner, Solomon Kwame Asumadu, popularly known as Owuo, while the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is putting forward a lawyer, Bernard Bediako Baidoo, for tomorrow’s two-horse by-election.
The by-election was occasioned by the death of the incumbent Member of Parliament, Ernest Kumi, in June this year, about six months after the first-time lawmaker was sworn in.
The EC told the Daily Graphic that it was fully ready for today’s by-election in Akwatia.
The Eastern Regional Director of the EC, John Appiah Baffoe, said all the measures and mechanisms were in place to ensure a successful by-election.
He added that electoral materials such as ballot papers, biometric verification devices (BVDs) and all other logistics were already in Akwatia.
Mr Baffoe said the EC engaged the political parties involved in the election at the District Inter-Party Advisory Committee (DIPAC) level last week to get their input and cooperation into a smooth and peaceful process.
He said the political parties pledged their support to the commission to ensure that the by-election would be peaceful and devoid of any violence, adding that the political parties agreed to the briefing on the number of party agents they could post to the coalition centre.
Technicians, others
Apart from these, the Eastern Regional EC Director said every constituency would have a minimum of four technicians, but for places with larger numbers, they would have up to five technicians.
“The commission is also ensuring that only people who are accredited will be allowed into the coalition centres.
We noticed that during previous elections, people who were not accredited got the opportunity to be there, and it created a lot of chaos,” he added.
Mr Baffoe urged the voters to come out in their numbers to vote because everything regarding the election had been done.
Police assurance
In a separate interview with the Daily Graphic in Akwatia last Sunday, the Director of Public Affairs of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Grace Ansah-Akrofi, said the heavy police deployment for the Akwatia by-election was not to intimidate voters but rather to give them full protection during the electioneering period.
She emphasised that the deployment of over 5,000 police personnel in Akwatia would be able to cater for all the 119 polling stations in the 21 electoral areas divided into nine zones to provide security to residents and voters before, during and after the polls.
ACP Ansah-Akrofi stated that the police were there to also guarantee the citizenry peace and security in the area, and that the voters should not entertain any fears.
She said the police checkpoints along the roads were part of the security arrangements to effectively control access to make sure that the police would be able to conduct routine checks where necessary.
"We are here because of your safety and security and to ensure law and order, so everybody in Akwatia Constituency should feel free and step out and go about your normal duties without fear or intimidation,” she said.
