Retired Justice of the Supreme Court, William Anaam Atuguba, has described the posture of the Electoral Commission (EC) on the call for forensic audit of the voters’ register as dictatorial.
He says the EC, despite having powers from the constitution to perform its functions should not lose sight of the fact that those functions are hinged on certain provisions enshrined in the same constitution.
Justice Atuguba says the position of the Commission is absurd, considering the fact that the response it is giving to the parties raising concerns over the register, particularly the NDC, does not conform to what the Constitution mandates it to do.
Citing certain provisions of Article 45 from the 1992 Constitution which stipulates some of the functions of the EC, the former Justice of Ghana’s apex court noted that the actions of the EC leaves much to be desired.
Justice Atuguba was speaking in an exclusive interview with Alfred Ocansey on the Ghana Tonight on TV3 Thursday, September 19, 2024, when questioned the logic in the EC’s response to the NDC.
“That looks very absurd to me and I don’t intend to be abusive but to make the point very forcefully, I think it is dictatorial because the Constitution gives them the power but that power is circumscribed by other provisions of the Constitution,” he stated.
Quoting Article 45 clauses ‘a’ and ‘d’, Justice Atuguba said among the functions of the EC as stated in the constitution is: (a) To compile the register of voters and revise it at such periods as may be determined by law (d)To educate the people on the electoral process and its purpose.
“Let’s even pause here. Is that proper education, just to tell people who have pointed out grievances which you have acknowledged exist, then after that you said that’s the end. Is that proper education of the people on the electoral process and the purpose?” quizzed Justice Atuguba.
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has called on the EC to conduct a forensic audit on the 2024 Voters’ register after it detected some illegal transfer and other anomalies in the document when the Commission exhibited the roll.
The party staged a demonstration dubbed ‘Enough is Enough’ on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, where a petition was presented to all 16 regional offices of the Commission to demand for the audit.
Prior to the protest, the EC had responded to the NDC’s call for the audit, saying it has corrected the errors presented to it. However, it noted that it is not going to exhibit it for the parties to see the corrections that have been made.
With the NDC saying it has more evidence of anomalies on the roll, it is calling for a third party intervention together with all the parties and the EC for a concensus to be reached.
Meanwhile, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) says it will also hit the streets should the EC heed to the calls of the NDC.
Source:onuaonline.com