EC prints extra 1 million presidential ballot papers for Ashanti Region - NDC alleges

The vigilance of agents of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) stationed at the various offices undertaking the printing of electoral materials for this year's elections at the printing house, has exposed the printing of additional 1 million Presidential ballot booklets meant for the Ashanti Region.

This is according to the NDC’s Deputy Director of Elections, Mr Daniel Amartey Mensah.

The opposition party claims this was being done on their blind side.

Narrating the incident on Okay FM’s Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, Mr Mensah said that the printing house was supposed to reprint the Parliamentary ballot papers for Efigya-Sekyere East Constituency after the logo for the PNC Parliamentary Candidate was changed to that of CPP but the agents of the NDC monitoring the reprinting spotted about 1 million Presidential ballot booklet for the entire Ashanti Region.

"The explanation from the Electoral Commission (EC) that the additional materials are meant for a run-off should the need arise, does not add up...

“The reprinting was for the Parliamentary and not for the Presidential and so our agents blew the alarm and the explanation given by the EC was that the Presidential ballot papers our people saw were for a run-off should the need arises”, he narrated.

Going by the explanation he claimed the EC gave, Mr Daniel Amartey Mensah wondered the essence of printing Presidential ballot papers to include all the 12 Candidates when only 2 Presidential Candidates are needed in a run-off contest.

“If there will be a run-off, do we need all the 12 Presidential Candidates on the ballot paper? EC is pretending not to know about the extra 1 million booklets of ballot papers for the Presidential Candidates for the Ashanti Region...."

“The EC is complicit in the printing of 1 million booklets of ballot papers for the Presidential Candidates for the Ashanti Region. The question is, who will pay the printing house for that additional printing and who gave out the contract to the printing house?” he asked.

“Whenever we complain about the activities of the Electoral Commission, people think that the NDC is just making empty noise to disturb the operations of the Commission and also to make the Commission appear before the public as an evil entity”, he bemoaned.

“This is a disturbing revelation and we are wondering what is going on in other printing houses. The EC's credibility in this situation is questionable”, he indicated.