The Electoral Commission (EC) has declared Faustina Elikplim Akurugu as the Member of Parliament-elect for the Dome/Kwabenya constituency, following the resolution of contentious electoral issues.

At an emergency meeting of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, EC Chairperson Jean Mensa affirmed that the electoral process in the constituency had come to a conclusion, emphasising that the outcome unequivocally reflected the will of the people as expressed during the polls.

"Today, the Commission is pleased to note that it has concluded proceedings and collation in the Dome/Kwabenya constituency," she said.

"It has gone full circle, and we are convinced, without a shadow of doubt, that the outcome reflects the will of the people as expressed at the polls," she added.

Jean Mensa further clarified, "Our interest is not to make any president. It is to ensure that our outcomes and our processes guarantee that the people's choice is upheld. So, we are happy to note that we have come full circle today, and the outcome of that election has been confirmed as legitimate—the choice of the people."

The EC chair explained that the challenges surrounding the Abokobi Women’s Training Center polling station were resolved after a thorough investigation.

"Polling station sheets, which neither of the parties had, were for the Abokobi Women’s Training Center. In the attempts to recollect, our officer had brought a pink sheet for the Abokobi Women’s Training Center, but it bore the word 'training' on it, and it was a presidential pink sheet.

"In the Commission's view, a training pink sheet had no business at the polling station on election day. Upon scrutiny, the Commission was of the opinion that it could not be accepted. It’s important to note that both the NDC and the NPP also did not have any evidence. Neither party had the pink sheets to confirm whether what was written on the training sheet was legitimate and accurate. In the interest of fairness, the Commission felt it was proper to rerun the election for that particular polling station to ensure fairness," she explained.

The EC Chairperson reiterated that the Commission’s interest was not in declaring any president, but rather in ensuring credible, transparent elections.

"We have always maintained as a Commission that our interest is not to make anybody a president," she stated.

"This is something we have said across the board to all our officers. Our interest is to conduct credible and transparent elections that are fair and ensure that the will of the people, as expressed at the polls, is upheld," Jean Mensa mentioned.

She further explained that during the meeting with party representatives, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) agreed with the decision to re-run, while the New Patriotic Party (NPP) expressed concerns due to their agents not being present during collation.

"Once neither party had the pink sheets to confirm, and both agreed, we concluded at that meeting that a rerun should be held. At that meeting, the NDC agreed with the idea to have a rerun, while the NPP expressed concerns, arguing that their agents had left the center and had not participated in the collation. Therefore, they wanted the Commission to start the collation afresh," she pointed out.

Jean Mensa also disclosed that the Commission had received all pink sheets from 369 polling stations, which had been cross-checked and found to be accurate, except for one missing sheet from the Abokobi Women’s Training Center.

"That is why we took the decision to have a rerun. And this, as I said, was agreed upon by the NDC. Since then, the Commission has conducted further investigations to clarify the situation surrounding the training pink sheet. Two days ago, we had a light-bulb moment—why not go beyond dealing with the party agents at the collation center, as they have not been able to provide the information we need? Why not investigate on the ground and look out for the agents at the Abokobi Training Center?

"We took steps, reached out to the parties, and were able to do that. The presiding officer was out of town, but we managed to contact her and ask her to return to Accra to answer a few questions. This morning, we met with her, and she explained how she came to use the pink sheet for presidential training, with the word 'training' stamped on it. It’s important to note that she did not have this training sheet with her on election day," she explained.

Contrary to claims made in the media, Jean Mensa emphasised that the training sheet was not signed by party agents.

"The question has been asked: 'It’s the ET sheet, why are they not using it?' Training sheets have no place at the polling station, and that’s why we are not using them. It was not a parliamentary pink sheet; even though it was labeled as 'training,' it was for the presidential election, and it was not signed by any of the party agents."

She further explained that the presiding officer had recognised that she did not have the parliamentary pink sheets; instead, she had the presidential sheets.

"She (the presiding officer) tallied everything on paper. Both agents of the NPP and the NDC confirmed the figures and agreed to go to the collation center to obtain a copy of the parliamentary pink sheet. Once there, they were informed to go to the district office. On their way there, unfortunately, they were accosted by some thugs who threatened their lives, and the presiding officer fled. The good news is that she had the sheet in her bag, but she fled. The agents also dispersed, so none of them had the results," Jean Mensa noted.

The declaration now puts an end to the heated contest over the seat between the NDC and the NPP in the constituency.

JKB/MA

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