EC on course to build strong institution - Edward Mahama

The Electoral Commission (EC) is on course to build itself into a strong public institution, Dr. Edward Mahama, the Presidential Nominee of the People's National Convention (PNC) has said.

He said the EC's disqualification of presidential aspirants with errors on their nomination forms was in line with his crusade to put strong institutions and systems in place under his administration.

He explained that following their disqualification the EC on October 10, he neither made a public comment on it nor attacked the Commission, but decided to seek redress in the court.

“Those of you who have been following my political career will understand that since 2004, I have been insisting that we build strong institutions with systems that work for every Ghanaian.

“And so when the EC flexed their muscle this time, I understood it in that direction that they are trying to build a strong institution, a strong system," Dr Mahama stated, after submitting his amended presidential nomination forms to the EC in Accra.

“I think the EC has an odious task because this election, there is a lot at stake, and PNC and I when we presented our forms a month ago, pledged our support for the EC; so far as they are doing their work well, we will support them,” he said.

It would be recalled that at the close of nominations, the EC acting on statutes regulating the filing of nominations for Presidential Elections - the 1992 Constitution, Public Elections Regulations 2016 (CI 94), Representation of People’s Law, 1992 (PNDC Law 284) and the Presidential Elections Law, 1992 (PNDC Law 285) disqualified 13 presidential nominees from contesting the December 7 polls.

However, the PPP's Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom proceeded to the high court and overturned the EC's ruling.

Not satisfied with the verdict of the high court, the EC also took the matter to the Supreme Court (SC), which on Monday, November 7, also ruled in favour of Dr Nduom.

The SC also directed that all similar proceedings at the High Court by the PNC, APC and the NDP be suspended, which pave the way for the disqualified candidates to submit their amended nomination forms by the close of Tuesday, November 8.