Nana Dr S. K. B. Asante, Paramount Chief of the Asokore Traditional Area has called on Ghanaians not to be complacent about the successful transition from one political party to the other but to undertake a thorough assessment of the electoral flaws that nearly marred the 2008 elections.
He said this would offer the nation the opportunity to address such serious lapses that nearly brought the country to its brink and would ensure that such lapses did not rear their ugly heads in subsequent elections.
Dr Asante made the call when he launched the report on the 2008 election compiled by the Coalition of Domestic Election Observation (CODEO) in Accra on Thurday.
The report produced under the auspices of the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development with funding from the USAID, covered electoral activities from registration of voters to primaries and campaigns of political parties, elections and aftermath of elections as well as the work of the Electoral Commission (EC).
According to Dr Asante, Ghanaians should remember that during the afterglow of elections, the several problems mentioned during the campaigns remain to be addressed, and that resolving these issues must be a top priority in order to secure and better organise the next election.
Dr Asante applauded four eminent Ghanaians, including the two former Presidents, Flt Lt J.J Rawlings and Mr J.A Kufuor as well as President J.E.A Mills and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo- Addo for their great roles in the sustenance of the Fourth Republic.
He commended Mr Rawlings for handing over power peacefully after his party had lost elections in 2000, praised Mr Kufuor for also waiting in opposition for 30 years and playing by the rules until he assumed the reins of power and handed over the seat of power peacefully after his two-term in office.
He said President Mills also deserved applause for conceding defeat in 2000 and 2004 even before the results were declared, and mentioned Nana Akufo-Addo for also accepting defeat in a closely contested election because he could have called for a recount or resorted to court actions that could have created problems.
Dr Asante urged the followers of the four leading political figures to play by the rules of the game, exercise restraints and always ensure that they put the interest and unity of the nation first in all their endeavours.
He commended CODEO for the comprehensive report, which details most of the problems associated with the 2008 elections, and urged the various stake holders to address the concerns raised by the report.
He also urged CODEO to go beyond election monitoring and complement the efforts of governance institutions like the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) by educating Ghanaians about civics, proper ways of voting, and entrenching democracy in young Ghanaians to reduce the increasing number of spoilt ballots.
Presenting a summary of CODEO’s Election 2008 Report, Professor Miranda Greenstreet said one issue that had the propensity to undermine the electoral process was the inability of the EC to execute a reliable timetable for all its activities.
This, she said, was very evident especially when the commission could not follow its timetable leading to problematic registration of voters, exhibition of voters register and limited voter’s registration.
She also mentioned the involvement of security agencies in the electoral process, and said that they needed to show more courage in arresting violators.
Professor Miranda Greenstreet mentioned that there should be a stronger presence of security personnel at polling stations that have large voter turn outs, in order to better facilitate and direct the voting crowds.
In addition, she mentioned that the electoral process must adopt a more transparent method of relaying election results during elections to prevent unnecessary delays that heighten tensions among the electorate.
She said, contrary to the constitutional provisions that prohibit chiefs from actively participating in party politics, some chiefs were seen on political party platforms campaigning for their preferred candidate during the last election.
Professor Greenstreet also said that CODEO was seeking biometric voting technology for the 2012 general presidential election, in order to eliminate double registration, and registration of minors and aliens.
Mr Kofi Quantson, former director of the Bureau of National Investigation who also attended the conference, said during a Q&A that if the country had fallen apart during the 2008 elections, it would have been caused by the incompetence of the security agencies for their inability to arrest and persecute electoral offenders.
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