Jean Mensa has lost credibility, moral right to be EC chair – Otokunor

Calls by some leading figures of the National Democratic Congress, NDC, for Jean Mensa, the chairperson of the Electoral Commission to vacate her post have resumed with the NDC's deputy General Secretary the latest to make such a demand.

In a Citi FM interview, Peter Boamah Otukonor said that Jean Mensa has lost ‘credibility’ and therefore must not be allowed to supervise another election.

“There is a need for major reforms of our electoral processes, including the replacement of the Chairperson for the Electoral Commission. Jean Mensa has lost credibility. She has lost that moral right and the realm of impartiality that is supposed to engulf the EC [is no more],” Mr. Otokunor said.

His demand comes on the back of the party’s decision to boycott a meeting by the Inter-Party Advisory Committee, IPAC, which set out to review the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections.

Otokunor says participating in the meeting would have been an endorsement of the conduct of the EC chair in the 2020 elections, which conduct the party considers to be unfair and illegal.

“We felt it would be ruthless to sit in such a meeting and endorse the odious bias by Jean Mensa during the conduct of the election. We felt that would have been very problematic.

"Jean Mensa must resign because the NDC claims she bloated figures. The NPP also claims she bloated figures.”

Last week, the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram also reiterated calls for Jean Mensa to resign.

Sam George said that since both major parties had issues with the result of the elections, it would have been in the right direction that Jean Mensa is booted out.

“The NPP agrees with the NDC that Jean Mensa bloated figures. Mac Manu [NPP’s Campaign Manager] said the figures Mahama got were bloated. Asiedu Nketia [NDC’s General Secretary] also said the figures Nana Akufo-Addo got were bloated.”

“So one person, one election you conducted, NDC says you bloated it for the NPP and NPP also says you bloated it for the NDC. Nobody can even say that you gave us the correct figure,” the MP lamented.