Politics of Thursday, 15 October 2020

Source: Owusu Morgan, Contributor

EC leading Ghana to 'Mayanka' - Asiedu Nketia

General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia

The General Secretary of opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has renewed his criticism of the country's Electoral Commission (EC) with 55 days to the December 7 general elections.

This time around, 'General Mosquito' as he is affectionately called, has accused the EC of leading the country to 'Mayanka'.

Mayanka is a coined Hausa language means a slaughterhouse, a place where animals are killed for consumption.

In an interview with Angel FM in Kumasi, the NDC chief scribe, said the intention of the EC was not to deliver free and fair elections.

In his view, every step the EC under the leadership of Madam Jean Mensah, has taken in line with this year's elections, proves beyond doubt that the commission has a masked agenda.

The agenda, he noted, is to ensure that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is retained in office at all cost.

General Mosquito stated that due to the hidden agenda, the EC has thrown overboard all the approved regulations and conventions governing the operations of the commission.

The NDC General Secretary disclosed that the EC has rendered the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) useless.

Instead of the committee serving as a consultative forum, the platform has been reduced to an information delivery tool by the EC.

Due to this, the views of political parties who are the major stakeholders in elections in the country do not matter anymore under the current regime.

Mr Nketiah again accused the EC of deliberately collapsing the technical committee of the party which is made up of representatives of the political parties, to execute its diabolical agenda.

The technical committee, he explained is mandated to handle the purchase of pieces of equipment and machines used by the commission for its operations.

What baffles the Vice President of the socialist international forum, is the EC's penchant for enacting new rules in the course of their work.

He revealed that the commission made it known to the political parties that a balloting exercise will be conducted for positions on the ballot paper to be determined.

But interestingly, the commission has just made a U-turn that the positioning will be done in order of submission of nominations forms.

Furthermore, the commission keeps changing voter identification cards issued to registrants in the of duplication, a development which Asiedu Nketia, makes it difficult for them to compile their records.

He said in the absence of these and many more anomalies being perpetrated by the EC, he is confident that the NDC has already won the upcoming elections.

The NDC chief scribe noted that in spite of the challenges, they will fight with the last drop of their blood to ensure that the will of the people prevails and therefore called on all well-meaning Ghanaians to join them.

It will be recalled that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) held a press conference and accused the NDC of preparing the minds of their supporters for the defeat which staring them in the face by launching a continuous attack on the EC.