Discarding validly cast ballots undermines the democratic process - Afari-Gyan

A former Electoral Commission Chairperson, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, has stated that discarding valid ballots in disputed areas instead of holding a rerun of the elections undermines Ghana’s democratic process.

Dr Afari-Gyan, while speaking on the sidelines of the Annual General Conference of the Ghana Bar Association in Kumasi, condemned the practice, describing it as unacceptable, according to a report by citinewsroom.

“Another implication is that it is not acceptable to cancel out some validly cast ballots. In some places, sometimes called wasted votes.

“In Nigeria, there is a doctrine of wasted votes that is used, and they throw away a lot of ballots and discard. It is not the correct thing to do. When you cancel the ballots, you may be punishing some people for no offence whatsoever. They have not committed any offence,” he is reported to have said.

According to him, the right thing to do is to rerun the election for the electorates to decide.

“It is not the election officials’ decision. It is not the judge’s decision. The democratic election is the people who decide,” he stated.

JKB/ ADG

Watch the final part of Hassan Ayariga's interview on GhanaWeb TV with Etsey Atisu on Election Desk below: