This afternoon, the purpose of our press conference is to provide citizens with an update on the nine outstanding constituencies where parliamentary results are yet to be completed.
As you may be aware, at the close of polls on Saturday the 7th of December 2024, there was a directive by some political party leaders to their supporters to besiege the coalition centres of the EC where the coalition was taking place.
And this directive was to them, to besiege the constituency coalition centres. It is important to note that the coalition in all the centres was proceeding in accordance with processes enshrined in CI 127.
The presence of hundreds of supporters who besieged our coalition centres brought proceedings to a standstill in a number of the centres. These supporters destroyed Pink sheets required for the coalition as well as results collation forms in some areas. In some instances, they vandalised and destroyed the desktop computers set up to collate the results electronically.
Additionally and sadly, they beat up our staff and threatened them with death and ultimately brought proceedings at the constituency coalition centres to a halt.
Citizens of Ghana, this is the reason why the coalition in some constituencies could not be completed prior to the declaration of the presidential results.
It is important to emphasise that the coalition in all centres were proceeding in accordance with laid down guidelines as enshrined in C.I. 127 before the supporters entered into our constituency coalition centres.
There was therefore no reason or justification for the call to supporters to besiege the coalition centres. That call, in the view of the commission, was calculated to disrupt the processes and mar the seamless and effortless electoral processes that had commenced from the start of the polls at 7 am that Saturday, 7th December 2024.)
In the view of the Commission, the directive to the supporters to besiege the constituency coalition centres was targeted at destroying documentary evidence and pink sheets, ballot papers, results collation forms, computers and to erase and wipe out all documents to be used for the collation.
Thankfully, the perpetrators of this act did not fully succeed in their endeavours, in that a few of our staff were able to retain some of the Pink sheets and the results collation forms necessary for collation.
Since then, as you all know, the commission has tried to complete the collation in some of these constituencies. We have been faced with resistance, threats, intimidation and the destruction of our properties.
Our staff have been threatened and the established collation processes, as guided by law, have been disrupted and results have been declared without due processes governing collation being followed.
In a number of instances, our staff have been threatened with death and forced to declare outcomes without adhering to the processes governing collation. It is instructive to note that the Electoral Commission has held discussions with the Ghana Police Service and has requested protection at all centres at which the collation was supposed to have continued.
Unfortunately, as we have witnessed on TV, images have emerged showing our staff being threatened and made to declare results stemming from incomplete collation processes. Unfortunately, this has been in the presence of the police. Though the police have been present at all the collation centres, the supporters of political parties have managed to gain access to the collation centres and have disrupted the collation process.
This state of affairs occurred during our very first attempt to complete the collation process for the Ablekuma North and Okaikwei Central constituencies.
Due to the threats faced by our staff and the disruption of the processes, the Commission agreed with the Ghana Police Service to relocate the collation centres from the Ablekuma North and Okaikwei Central constituencies to the Greater Accra Regional Office at Ridge.
It was agreed that each political party would present two agents and the political parties were notified accordingly.
In spite of police presence at our regional offices, the collation process was once again disrupted and taken over by political party leaders and supporters, and results declared for both constituencies without due process being followed.
In the case of Okaikwei Central, a winner was declared without collating results from 31 polling stations. In the case of the Ablekuma North constituency, a winner was declared without collating results from 62 polling stations.
This is unacceptable. It is important to note that the declarations made by our staff were made under threat and the Commission considers this as illegal. Those declarations, as well as others that have gone on in other constituencies, will not be upheld by the Commission.
Dear citizens, it is for this reason that the Commission met with the Ghana Police Service once again to re-examine the nature of the security arrangements being provided by the police. The Commission was desirous to protect its staff as well as its electoral collation process.
Following the engagement with the police, it was agreed that the Tesano Police Depot would be used as the collation centre for all outstanding collations including Ablekuma North, Okaikwei Central, Tema Central, Dome Kwabenya, Nsawam Adoagyiri, Akwatia, Fanteakwa North, Suhum, Techiman South, Obuasi East, Ahafo Ano North, Ahafo Ano South West.
The political parties were duly informed once again to nominate two agents per constituency to observe the collation process. Unfortunately, the collation process for only three constituencies were successfully completed and they are Akwatia, Fanteakwa North and the Suhum constituencies.
The returning officers in all the three constituencies I have just mentioned were allowed for the first time to carry out their work without interference. This enabled them to complete the collation and declare the true outcomes of the election.
Though the collation for the Nsawam Adoagyiri constituency at the Police Depot was well advanced on Thursday 12 December 2024, the parties agreed to put the collation on hold until the following day, which was Friday 13 December 2024. Unfortunately, the collation did not take place in spite of the presence of our teams at the collation centre, that is the Tesano Police Depot. This was because the Ghana Police Service informed the Commission that their intelligence reports showed that party supporters were planning to besiege the Police Depot. They thus advised that the process be discontinued.
Ladies and gentlemen, though the Commission was determined to complete the set collation processes in the nine constituencies on that Friday 13 December, it could not do so without the assurance of the police. In the absence of that, the collation process planned for that Friday was called off in the evening as mentioned earlier.
The Commission is of the view that had the process been allowed to continue, we would have successfully concluded the collation processes and declared the outcomes of the election by now.
In the light of that development and as a result of putting the collation process on scheduled for that Friday on hold, the Commission once again met with the Ghana Police Service on Monday 16 December 2024 to agree on a new date.
At the meeting, the Commission proposed Wednesday 18 December 2024. At that meeting, the police indicated that they could no longer provide the Tesano Police Depot as a location for the collation process. It was agreed that new locations in Accra and Kumasi would be designated for the collation process.
The Accra locations and time were communicated to the police on Tuesday 17 December. The police assured the Commission of its full cooperation and readiness to enable us to complete the collation processes. However, later that Tuesday 17 December, the police in the letter to the Commission indicated that, once again, their intelligence reports had revealed planned unrests by party supporters for both Accra and Kumasi, making it difficult for them to guarantee the security of the collation process as earlier planned.
This has put our efforts to complete the collation process at a standstill. It is important to note that contrary to the narrative that the Commission staff have not been ready, our staff have been fully aligned and ready and poised to complete their task. Indeed, all our teams from the regions, the Eastern region, the Ashanti region, were all at the Tesano Police Depot to carry out their tasks and to bring it to a conclusion.
Their readiness has been in spite of the beatings and threats they have received. I must note that they have been in spite of the beatings and threats, they have been determined and have shown resolve to carry out their functions and have fully cooperated with the police to ensure the full completion of the collation process for their respective constituencies.
The Commission lauds their courage and dedication to duty.
To all our staff, both permanent and temporary, where collation centres were brought to a standstill, to staff who were beaten and threatened, our hearts go out to you. We say Ayekoo, we applaud your courage and your resolve to do the right thing in the face of death threats. Your courage has encouraged the majority of us to keep going on and to keep doing what is right for God and country.
As a Commission, we have always maintained that our mandate is not to make anybody a President or a Member of Parliament.
Our mandate, as per the Constitution, is to carry out credible, transparent and fair elections whose outcomes guarantee that the choice of the voters as expressed at the polls is upheld. This was evident in the just-ended general election which took place on Saturday 7 December 2024.
Indeed, the process has been hailed by world leaders and by both local and international observers as credible, transparent and highly successful. The Commission is keen to ensure that all the outstanding processes in the nine constituencies follow due process. It goes without saying that what happened during our attempt to complete the collation process in some of the nine constituencies is unlawful.
As indicated, the Commission will not uphold declarations ensuing from incomplete and unlawful processes. And these include in Nsawam Adoagyiri where parties, of course, on election day besieged the collation centre and brought the collation there to a halt. As mentioned, the Commission tried to start to complete the collation process on Friday 13 December.
However, when the collation for 143 polling stations had been done, there was an agreement that they should put it on hold until the following day. Sadly, that following day was not to be and the collation was called off because we were informed by the police service that supporters of the parties were planning to besiege the police depot and to cause disruptions at the centre. We were advised to put it on hold and so that collation is incomplete and we cannot declare an outcome.
I must note that in the Ahafo Ano South West and in the Ahafo Ano North, the collation on election day was also disrupted and no winners were declared. Those processes were incomplete and until they are complete, the Commission will not be in the position to declare a winner.
In Obuasi East, the collation centre was attacked by party supporters and the returning officer was threatened with an axe. His hands were lifted up and he was asked to declare a winner when that was not what was reflected on the results collation form. Â Again, that process was not lawful and the Commission would not uphold it.
In the Okaikwei Central, I did mention that 110 polling stations results were used to declare a winner instead of 141. The Commission would not uphold that process.
In the Ablekuma North constituency, 219 polling station results were used to declare a winner instead of 281 polling station results. The Commission would not uphold that declaration.
In Tema Central, the DEO again was threatening and he was forced to declare results using 146 polling stations instead of 148. The Commission would not uphold that declaration.
In Bono East, the returning officer and other staff were physically assaulted and forced to re-declare the results at gunpoint. It is important to note that the collation process had not been completed. There also, the Commission would not uphold those processes.
In Dome Kwabenya, there is some contention with three polling station results. The Commission is carrying out its own investigation with the three polling station results. I believe 367 of those results have been duly declared as legitimate. There are three results that are outstanding and the Commission is carrying out its own investigations to enable it to take a decision.
So ladies and gentlemen, this is a nutshell of the issues outstanding in the nine constituencies. In the view of the Commission, upholding such unlawful collations and declarations will set a bad precedent for our country and set us back to the dark days. I don’t believe that as a country, this is where we should want to go. What it implies is that anyone who has force or might can take over a collation process and declare himself or herself as a Member of Parliament or a President.
As a country, we should not go down that slippery slope. We therefore use this occasion to humbly call on the President of Ghana, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo, as well as our President-Elect, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, to intervene in this matter so as to ensure that the Commission is provided with the necessary security and protection to carry out its functions.
We also call on the National Election Security Task Force to work together to put in place arraignments to ensure that our staff and our processes are protected and secured in a way that will ensure that the true outcomes of our processes reflect the will of the people as expressed on the pink sheets.
We conclude by reiterating that as a Commission, our mandate is not to make anybody a President or a Member of Parliament. Our mandate, as mentioned earlier, is simply to conduct credible, transparent and fair processes that uphold the choice of voters.
The election on the 7th of December 2024 is a testament of that assertion. We would like to finally call on the citizens of Ghana to support us in our bid to carry out our mandate. May God bless all of you and may God bless our homeland Ghana and make her great and strong.
Thank you very much.