Ghanaian academic, political scientist, and former Chairman of the Electoral Commission (EC), Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, has recommended that an unsucceeded election petition by candidates should attract sanctions.
According to him in a public lecture in Accra organized by the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) and the One Ghana Movement, on Monday, January 8, 2024, his recommendation was to prevent election petitions from becoming a ‘wanton’ fashion. The said lecture was held to commemorate the Constitution Day which fell on Sunday, January 7, 2024.
He stated that some candidates rushed to court with election petitions on the grounds of alleged manipulation of results primarily to calm their financiers and supporters. He added that, though there are mistakes that occur in elections, there are genuine election mistakes that could be discovered and corrected.
To prevent individuals including the EC from wrongdoing for their gains, he said, there should be punishment for willful wrongdoers and added that all persons connected with the conduct of elections must be held strictly accountable for their actions.
He also made it known that all categories of election workers must be familiar with the applicable regime of sanctions during their training and any infraction must be seen to be published.
Again, Dr. Afari-Gyan said an election case should not be dismissed forthwith on a technicality like “the case was not filed in time because the lawyer brought a write instead of a petition”.
“For all you know, the candidate and the voters do not know the filing deadline let alone the difference between a writ and a petition,” he said.
