Charlotte Osei’s sack was on point - Professor Gyimah-Boadi

Former Executive Director of the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD), Professor Emmanuel Gyimah-Boadi has lauded President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the dismissal of the former Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Madam Charlotte Osei.

In a yet to be aired interview he granted Ghanaweb’s Kyenkyenhene Boateng, he described her dismissal as on point indicating that there were grievous grounds for her removal calling on those who are averse to the President’s decision to come again.

“The kinds of things for which the former chairperson of the commission was indicted are very heavy. On that basis, I think the dismissal was on point. That you engage in procurement violations of that magnitude, that you do sole sourcing of that magnitude, that you make unilateral decisions in matters like these when you are talking about a commission…anybody who says those were not grievous enough and are not enough grounds for removing a public official at that level of responsibility should come again”, he said on 21 minutes with KKB.

On how he saw the conduct of December 2016 elections, Professor Gyimah-Boadi said “There were some highly disturbing developments after the vote thus after the election and before the declaration of the results. One for me and for those of us who were looking at the numbers and so on….the press conference at which the commission said voter turnout was historic low about of about 49% …that was scandalous. Where did they get that figure from?”

It would be recalled that in June this year. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo fired the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Madam Charlotte Osei and her two deputies, Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwah respectively.

This was after the Committee set up by the Chief Justice, Justice Sophia Akuffo, pursuant to Article 146(4) of the Constitution, to Investigate separate complaints brought against the three persons by Ghanaian citizens, recommended their removal from office.

The Committee recommended their removal on the basis of stated misbehaviour and incompetence, pursuant in Article 146(1) of the Constitution.

The provisions of Article 146(9) of the Constitution require the President of the Republic to act in accordance with the recommendations of the Committee.