Involve stakeholders in Election 2020 review - CODEO

The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) has called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to, as part of its review of the conduct of the 2020 general election, carefully reflect on its election results management processes and make appropriate reforms to help deepen stakeholder trust and public confidence in electoral outcomes.

“In doing so, the commission must adequately involve relevant stakeholders such as political parties, civil society organisations (CSOs), the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), security agencies, the National Media Communication (NMC) and the media, among others, and take on board their inputs,” it said.

This was contained in CODEO's second and final post-election observation report issued in Accra last Thursday.

Parliamentary petitions

It also called on the judiciary to expedite action on the various parliamentary election petitions pending before the courts.

It urged all parties to such disputes to remain calm and allow the legal processes to conclude.

On all incidents of electoral violence that took place during the 2020 elections, CODEO reiterated its call on the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and the Ghana Police Service to inform Ghanaians about the status of the investigations.

The report reminded the IGP that he owed the Ghanaian public a duty to provide such information, which would go a long way to bolster public confidence in the criminal justice system, pointing out that “it will be a huge disappointment if the IGP and the Police Service fail to live up to this expectation.”

Election petition.

It commended the former President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for pursuing their grievances through legitimate election adjudicating channels, including the courts.

“CODEO particularly commends Mr Mahama for accepting the outcomes of the election petition despite his disagreement with the legal processes and the court's verdict.

“CODEO also commends the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for generally conducting themselves well during the court hearings and its aftermath,” it stated.

The report urged all parties and candidates to use legitimate processes to resolve any outstanding grievances.

“The coalition believes that this second presidential election petition under the Fourth Republic will help deepen respect for the rule of law and further strengthen the electoral processes through appropriate recommendations for electoral reforms,” it stated.

It commended Ghanaians for their general conduct during the 2020 presidential election petition proceedings and outcomes.

The post-election observation focused on 30 selected constituencies where some post-election developments such as electoral violence and or election disputes took place in the immediate post-election period. CODEO released its first post 2020 election observation report on Wednesday, February 3, 2021.