Election 2020: NDC’s claim to have won parliamentary majority false – Nkrumah

The government has described as “false” claims by the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and its flagbearer John Dramani Mahama that they have won majority of parliamentary seats in the just ended December 7 polls.

According to the government, it does not lie in the mouth of any candidate to declare it has won majority in Parliament.

Addressing the media on Tuesday evening [8 Dec 2020], the presidential candidate of the NDC Mr Mahama said the NDC’s analysis of the results show that the biggest opposition party has won the majority of seats in Parliament.

“We thank the electorate for giving us a working majority in parliament; 140 seats in Parliament, which is a majority and no attempt should be made to subvert that.

“I’ve looked at the results we’ve collated so far and I’m excited, I’m happy with the results; we won in 10 regions out of 16 and the Ghanaian people have expressed confidence in us,” Mr Mahama said.

But reacting to this at a press conference few hours later, Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said Mr Mahama’s claim is false.

Mr Nkrumah said: “For the first time, a candidate, a presidential candidate is claiming his party has secured parliamentary majority.

“That claim by the candidate to have won a parliamentary majority is false.

“Anybody who has followed Ghana’s electoral process knows that we have returning officers at the 275 constituencies that is different from the returning officer for the presidential elections.

“These returning officers collate the results and make a formal declaration of who has won the constituency.

“The Ghanaian media is littered across all 275 constituencies and their collation centres. You are the ones reporting this election. If indeed anybody has won 140 in Parliament by now you will know.

“So the claim by Mr Mahama that his party has won parliamentary majority is false…so it is important that at this point in time that claim be shot down so that the Ghanaian public, some of whom will be going to bed, the international community listening doesn’t get that idea that Mr Mahama’s party have won parliamentary majority.”