Politics of Thursday, 7 October 2004

Source: GNA

NCCE to compose observation teams for December elections

Kumasi, Oct. 7, GNA - The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) is to compose observation teams at all regional levels in the country to monitor the December general elections.

Mr Larry Bimi, chairman of the Commission, who announced this, said the teams which would be made up of the Commission's members, directors, deputy directors and regional directors of the NCCE, would each be headed by Commission members.

Mr Bimi made the announcement at the opening session of a three-day workshop on Election Management and Monitoring, organised by the NCCE in Kumasi on Thursday, was designed to equip senior staff of the Commission with requisite skills and strategies for monitoring the elections.

The 30 participants comprised the Commission's members, divisional directors, directors and deputy directors at the head office and regional directors.

The NCCE chairman said final report of the observation exercise after the general elections would be compiled into one document to be known as "The NCCE Election 2004 Observation Report".

Mr Bimi said, "I am hopeful that such a report would become a guide for political parties and our forward march towards enhanced democracy".

He, however, made it clear that the observation and the final report was not an attempt to pass judgement on the general elections, but rather provide relevant information on what happened during the elections.

"Based on the information that will be provided under the NCCE election observation report, the good people of Ghana would then make their own judgement on the fairness or otherwise of the presidential and parliamentary elections", he added.

Mr Kusi Aboraah, Ashanti Regional Director of the NCCE in a welcome address, said since proper education of people in matters of politics was crucial to the country's democratic culture, it was imperative for the NCCE to intensify its educational drives at the various levels.

He observed that even though there were constraints, that should not obstruct their resolve to carry their voter and allied education campaigns to the remote areas.