Election reforms: You’re bitter, you erred; go to IPAC, Boadu tells NDC

The general secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) says the NDC must accept their mistake and submit their proposed electoral reforms to IPAC

Kent Mensah August 22, 2021

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John Boadu, general secretary of the NPP — John Boadu, NPP general secretary

“I think they (the NDC) are still bitter about the Electoral Commission. They are still bitter about the whole process but their bitterness should translate into increasing their own capacities to be able to know their votes and account for every single vote”

The General Secretary of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), John Boadu, has advised former president John Dramani Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to eat humble pie for sidestepping the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) in presenting their election proposals.

Mahama in a recent media interview described the posture of the Electoral Commission towards the NDC’s proposed electoral reforms and subsequent directive for them to be tabled before IPAC as absurd and surprising.

Reacting to Mahama’s assertions in an exclusive interview with Asaase Radio, Boadu explained that IPAC is the only body empowered to review and make systematic changes in Ghana’s electoral body to that effect and as such called on the NDC to accept it erred and present its proposal to the body.

“I think that the former president is getting it wrong,” Boadu told the host of The Big Bulletin Beatrice Adu.

“They are not the only political party in the country and they cannot say that without proper discussions and agreement by all political parties in the country, their proposals can be taken by the Electoral Commission,” he said.

Boadu also said the recent moves by the largest opposition party in Ghana suggest the NDC remains bitter about the 2020 general elections and the Electoral Commission.

“I think they (the NDC) are still bitter about the Electoral Commission. They are still bitter about the whole process but their bitterness should translate into increasing their own capacities to be able to know their votes and account for every single vote,” Boadu added.

The recommendations

As part of their recommendations, the NDC proposed that the selection of the EC chairperson should be done by Parliament instead of an appointment from the President. The party also asked that the commission be divided into two with a responsibility of managing political parties and running elections.

Reacting to the recommendations of the NDC in an exclusive interview with Beatrice Adu on Asaase Radio’s The Big Bulletin, Dr Serebour Quaicoe, the director of electoral service at the EC said: “What I can say is they have written officially to the commission and we have replied officially to them to table their requests at the IPAC meeting so that it will be a decision of IPAC and not a specific party.”

He added: “Monumental decisions like the ones proposed by the NDC can be agreed on and implemented only after there is a consensus on the proposals at the IPAC level.”