Minority regrets Electoral Commission?s refusal

....to extend district elections

The Minority Leader in Parliament, Mr Alban Bagbin, has expressed regret about the refusal of the Electoral Commission (EC) to adhere to genuine call for the extension of time for the filing of nominations by prospective candidates to contest the District Level Elections.

He described the one-day extension of the exercise by the EC as an insult to Ghanaians and an action that has debarred several potential candidates from contesting the elections.

Mr Bagbin said that 75 per cent of Ghanaians live in the rural areas and do not have access to radio and television sets and did not hear of the day?s extension, and that school heads could endorse their forms. ?Several days after the closing date, people were still holding their forms and wondering where to get magistrate to sign them,? the Minority leader stated.

Mr Bagbin, who is the Member of Parliament for Nadowli North was addressing a meeting of party functionaries and loyalties at Nadowli. The Minority Leader was on a week?s visit to his constituency to interact with the people and to assist progress of work on projects initiated by him. He said the action of the EC has not only prevented a lot of rural people from contesting the forthcoming District Level Elections but killed their initiative and zeal of involvement and participation.

He said the insensitivity of the EC to the call for extension runs counter to efforts at encouraging the rural folks to get fully involved in participatory democracy and decision-making process at the grass root level.