Special Prosecutor can’t monitor elections — APC

The founder and leader of the All People’s Congress (APC), Mr Hssan Ayariga, has stated that it is not part of the functions of the Special Prosecutor to monitor elections.

He said the Special Prosecutor could only investigate cases of corruption and fraud reported to the office but not to send personnel to polling stations or collation centres to monitor the collation of election results.

Context

At his maiden media engagement, the Special Prosecutor, Mr Kissi Agyebeng, said agents of the Office of Special Prosecutor (OSP) would be posted to all electoral areas to monitor all pink sheets and collation results to ensure that “the results to be announced is a true reflection of what Ghanaians voted for.”

He said the OSP would take a keen interest in the monitoring of future election results as part of efforts to deepen public trust in the electoral process and promote democracy.

Mr Agyebeng said it was the desire that the country would have free and fair elections without electoral officers changing pink sheets or anything that would affect elections in the country.

Ayariga

But Mr Ayariga said what the SP intended to do was beyond his mandate or that of the office.

He explained the duty of the OSP was to investigate corruption and not to monitor collation of election results.

He wondered what the Electoral Commission (EC) and monitoring groups, especially the political parties, would be doing on election day.

“Every institution has a mandate and they must focus on what they are doing and not to veer into the domain of other institutions,” he stated.