NPP sponsored the pink sheets scandal – Asiedu Nketia

General Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) of complicity in the alleged attempts by some officials of the Electoral Commission (EC) to authenticate some pink sheets.

In his estimation, the opposition party connived with the EC officers to subject the EC to public ridicule and provide enough grounds that the 2012 elections were not free and fair.

Three electoral officers, two of them from the Savelugu District Electoral Commission, were on Sunday arrested by the police for allegedly attempting to validate some unsigned pink sheets.

The pink sheets contain records of the number of ballots issued at a polling station on voting day, the total number of votes, the ballot account and the number of votes obtained by each candidate. The presiding officer at each polling station must sign all pink sheets.

Speaking in an interview on Okay FM Monday, Asiedu Nketia said the NPP loyalists are only tickling themselves by leveling unfounded allegations against the NDC, stressing that “their attempts will end in futility.”

“We won’t sit down unconcerned for the NPP to conspire with some people to dent the credibility of the EC and the results of the election”, he said.

“If somebody works under the cover of darkness and manipulates an electoral official to forcibly sign pink sheets and the signed sheets are presented, it will contradict the copies that the parties have.

“If this occurs, that will form the basis for the court to say that the Electoral Commission’s results are fraudulent so it should be nullified. When that is achieved it is the NDC that suffers,” he averred.

He therefore questioned the basis for the NPP's accusations when any move to sign the unsigned pink sheets would affect the legitimacy of President John Mahama and the NDC’s victory in the 2012 December polls.

He further took a swipe at the NPP General Secretary, Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, describing him as a rabble-rouser who takes delight in inciting party followers against state institutions.

Mr Owusu Afriyie had earlier pointed accusing fingers at the NDC and the EC for allegedly masterminding the actions of the EC officials and insisted that figures of the 2012 election were massaged in the NDC’s favour.