Veep tasks EC to address 2008 electoral complaints before 2012

Accra, May 19, GNA - Vice President John Dramani Mahama on Wednesday called on the Electoral Commission to address all complaints of abuses that were forwarded to the commission before conducting the next general election.

"Some complaints were made by the two leading parties about abuses of the electoral process and I urge the Electoral Commission not to sweep them under the carpet. A thorough interrogation of these complaints can only strengthen our electoral system." The Vice President made the call when he addressed the Commonwealth conference of Heads of Election Management bodies at the Accra International conference centre.

The three-day conference which attracted participants from all the 54-member states would among other issues strategise on activities that would promote freedom and good governance.

The conference would also tackle all causes of electoral failure in some member- states and help provide them with technical assistance and capacity building.

Vice President Mahama commended the commonwealth secretariat for choosing to hold the conference in Ghana, which he said would boost the country's image in democratic dispensation in Africa. "In 2008 our Electoral Commission was tested to the limit. A closely fought election brought us to the brink and tested Ghana's belief in democratic governance to the limit."

He pledged government's support to the EC in all its statutory functions to position it as a model in Africa and the developing world. "As we work towards the presidential and parliamentary elections in 2012, the government is seriously studying proposals to support the Electoral Commission undertake biometric voter registration. The government will also collaborate with Electoral Commission and all stakeholders to ensure successful elections in December, 2012 to once again enhance the democratic credentials of Ghana."

Madam Masrie Mwamba, Secretary General of the Commonwealth Election Management Bodies, said her outfit was fighting tooth and nail to create a conducive environment for the exercise of democracy among member-states.

She said the conference would be used to address all the electoral inadequacies that had recurred in various countries and re-strategise ways by which a common platform for democracy would be created. Mr. Navin Chawla, Chief Electoral Commissioner of India said the conference would at the end of their three-day programme come out with a steering committee on elections and pledged the support of the India government to ensure its success in the world.