The Ghanaian Electoral Commission (EC) has been under criticism for allegedly denying voters in the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi, and Lipke (SALL) areas their right to vote in the 2020 parliamentary elections, a development that has sparked intense public discussion. Important public figures have made forceful complaints, but the EC has categorically refuted these allegations, calling them unfounded.
The Fix The Country Movement’s organizer and attorney, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, has sharply attacked the EC’s handling of the initial accusations made by Franklin Cudjoe, President of IMANI Africa. Barker-Vormawor called the EC’s statement “damning,” linking it to what he sees as a larger problem in the nation with impunity and poor governance.
The EC further accused IMANI Africa of spreading falsehoods about its operations, urging the public to seek verified information directly from the commission. Despite these clarifications, the controversy has only deepened, with Barker-Vormawor accusing the Chief Justice of conspiring to protect EC Chairperson, Jean Mensa, from scrutiny. He argued that the directive to create the Guan Constituency came improperly from the Minister of Local Government rather than through the constitutionally mandated independent processes.
Barker-Vormawor also questioned the EC’s justification and its consequences for democratic integrity, pointing out procedural delays connected to the Attorney General’s involvement. He suggested that the EC’s actions were motivated more by outside pressure than by a legal requirement, saying, “They want Ghanaians to accept that it was not the Supreme Court decision as far back as July that necessarily required them to create the constituency but rather the Minister of Local Government’s letter in November.”
Franklin Cudjoe expressed his dissatisfaction once more and charged the EC with acting dishonestly in handling the SALL case. He underlined that the residents of SALL were categorically denied the right to vote because they were unable to cast ballots in the legislative elections held soon prior to the 2020 elections, notwithstanding the EC’s claims.
This prolonged issue not only casts an extended gloom over Ghana’s democratic procedures by this ongoing disagreement, which also calls into question the procedural fairness and transparency of the Electoral Commission. The matter continues to be a major national concern as both sides of the argument maintain their viewpoints, with potential consequences for next elections and governance reforms in Ghana.
