'Demonising EC after loss bad'

Trampling the Electoral Commission after every defeat at the polls is a threat to Ghana's democracy, security analyst Dr Kwesi Aning has warned.

"Throughout the history of the fourth republic, when people win elections with the same register, they have never been abusive of the commission; but when they lose elections even with the same register, the same commission, [then] the same people suddenly become monsters," the head of research at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTCH) said in an interview on the sidelines of a public lecture delivered by Mr. Simon Coveney, Minister of Defence for Ireland.

The lecture was organised by the KAIPTC in collaboration with the Irish Embassy on the topic, "Irish Peacekeeping: Over 50 years of service".

"So just like the security services, when people are in power they like the state institutions but immediately they leave power they become suspicious of them," Dr Aning added.

"And I think as a people, it's up to us to say: 'How do we best protect our institutions so that they can perform as optimally for our benefits as possible?'.

"I think we are too quick to be suspicious, abusive and dismissive when we are on the losing end; I don’t think it will help us as a nation," Dr. Aning added.