Parliament approves GHC826m for 2016 elections

The Electoral Commission of Ghana has been granted an amount of GHC826.8 million for the conduct of the 2016 elections.

The amount was approved by Parliament Monday. The EC had presented a budget of GHC1.1 million and an additional 100 million for administrative purposes but the amount failed to sail through. The budget was slashed by over GHC400 million.

It is believed that the massive slash of the EC’s budget was informed by the finance ministry’s decision not to exceed GHC800 million for the polls.

Meanwhile, the budget was quiet on whether or not the electoral body will open a new voters’ roll.

Ghana goes to the polls on November 7 to elect a president and parliamentary candidates.

The opposition New Patriotic Party has been at the forefront of the push for a new register. The EC has subsequently established a committee to probe the issues of credibility being raised against the existing register.