EC is ready for 2016 polls – Amadu Sulley

Mr Amadu Sulley, Deputy Chairman of the Electoral Commission in charge of Operations, has assured Ghanaians that the Electoral Commission is ready to oversee the upcoming November polls despite the challenges.

He gave this assurance while speaking to the media after the opening session of a National Police Command Conference which was held under the theme ‘Safeguarding our Democracy - Safe and Secure Environment before, during and after Election 2016’.

According to him, despite the numerous hurdles, the EC is poised to deliver its constituted mandate of conducting yet another peaceful election in the history of the country.

Mr Sulley noted that security is a major ingredient of the electioneering process and must not be compromised in delivering a credible election.

He hinted that the EC will soon start the voter register exhibition to help it clean the register to dismiss any notion of foul play.

The Deputy Chair of the EC appealed to the media to be circumspect in reporting stories about the operations of the EC in order not to cause undue tension in the country.

To the police, he hinted that the EC was putting in place measures to lessen the burden on them by reducing the number of persons who will converge at a polling station to cast their votes by increasing the number of polling centres from 26,000 to 29,000.

He also hinted that the period of voter register exhibition will be extended from two weeks to three to see to it that every registered voter gets the opportunity to undergo the process.

Mr Prosper Bani, Minister of Interior, charged the Police Service to live above reproach and carry out its duty with integrity and without fear and favour.

“Government policy is consistent on this: the Police Service must be approachable to all political groups. You are expected to remain neutral, professional and vigilant throughout the whole process,” he reiterated.

He called for immediate measures to stop the growing incidence of armed robberies and other types of criminal activities.

Mr Bani lauded the Police Administration for the proactive measures it is putting in place to safeguard the peace of the country before, during and after the November polls.

“You must ensure the immediate disbanding of each and every private security forces that are increasingly being linked to political parties,” he stressed.

John Kudalor, Inspector General of Police (IGP), stressed that as part of measures to ensure that the upcoming November polls is without any hurdle, the National Election Security Taskforce (NESTF), together with its regional and district replicas, has been inaugurated far ahead of time.

“The core objective of the NESTF is to maintain law and order before, during and after the elections. Consequently, electioneering campaigns across the country will be effectively protected,” he added.

He mentioned that the Police Administration was undertaking other proactive measures such as IGP’s Dialogue Series, mobilisation and training of personnel, mobilisation of transport logistics and assembling of legal, investigation and prosecution teams to adequately prepare for the elections.

The IGP further hinted that a detailed auditing of the entire country has been done to identify all flashpoints and vulnerable areas; comprehensive operational strategies have also been mapped out to take care of them.

Touching on the growing spate of armed robbery in the country, the IGP assured that directives would be given to the regional commanders to employ to effectively deal with the situation.

Mr Kudalor seized the opportunity to reiterate that the Police Administration will discharge its constituted mandate to keep the peace of the country.

“As we continue to look for the best way to deliver this election peacefully, I urge you all to open up and let us discuss the issues that affect the process in an open and frank manner, with the view of finding solutions to our challenges,” he appealed.