‘Sleep caused us 2020 elections, this time we won’t sleep’- Gbande assures NDC supporters

Mr Mustapha Foyo Gbande, Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has attributed the party’s defeat in the 2020 elections to a lack of vigilance on the part of its members.

He stated that the NDC "slept on the job" during the last election but vowed that it would not happen again.

‘I must admit, we slept in 2020, we were asleep, and this time around we are well awake," Gbande asserted on Tuesday, September 3, 2024.

Mr Gbande further alleged that the government is using Dr. Eric Bossman Asare, a Deputy Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, to manipulate the electoral process.

He described Dr. Asare as a "dangerous actor" within the Commission, accusing him of being protected by six armed soldiers and questioning why he has such security measures, comparing it to the security of other high-ranking officials like the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Governor of the Bank of Ghana.

"Bossman is the one being used currently by the government.

He is a dangerous actor at the Electoral Commission today... Even the IGP, who is the head of the entire Ghana Police Service, is he protected by armed military men?" Gbande questioned.

His comments come amid concerns from the NDC over errors in the voters' register, which the party claims included deliberate voter transfers without their knowledge.

The NDC had earlier demanded an explanation from the Electoral Commission (EC) on these discrepancies.

In response, Dr. Eric Bossman Asare, Deputy Chairman of the EC in charge of Corporate Services, acknowledged that there were mistakes in the register but denied any intent to manipulate the results.

Dr. Asare revealed that preliminary investigations showed that voter transfers were carried out for 38 individuals using the credentials of an Electoral Commission official.

He emphasized that these transfers were recorded in the Voter Management System’s audit logs and that facial verification had been used to confirm the identity of those affected.

“It is also absolutely untrue that the Commission has added names to the Voters Register in a bid to rig the elections for a particular party.

Those allegations are without merit and should be disregarded by the public.

The EC has no intention of bloating the register to give any political party an advantage over the other,” Dr. Asare clarified.

The NDC has reiterated its commitment to being vigilant in the upcoming elections to ensure a fair and transparent process.

Mr Gbande this assurance to NDC supporters while speaking on Accra-based Onua TV