2024 Elections: EC implements strategies to ensure credibiity and transparency
The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana has outlined a series of measures to ensure transparent, credible, and efficient elections
The actions undertaken by the EC were revealed during an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting on Friday, November 29.
The meeting provided updates on preparations for the upcoming December 7 general elections, with a focus on improving the collation process and addressing discrepancies in ballot papers.
As part of efforts to enhance the integrity of the electoral process, the EC announced the introduction of collation officers at the constituency and regional levels.
These officers, appointed under Regulation 2(3)(b) of C.I. 127, will perform electronic collation of polling station results for both presidential and parliamentary elections.
According to the EC, the recruitment process for the collation officers was rigorous.
It involved public advertisements, interviews conducted by a panel comprising EC officials and representatives from the Ghana Statistical Service, and specialised training to equip them for their roles.
“The Commission engaged collation officers to enhance the integrity of the collation process,” the EC stated.
“Their primary function is to conduct electronic collation of polling station results in an Excel format provided by the Commission.
They will work independently alongside Returning Officers, who will handle the manual collation. Both processes will be compared to ensure accuracy.”
Collation at the regional level will take place at the Commission’s regional offices, while the national collation will be conducted in Accra at a location to be announced soon.
Political parties and presidential candidates will receive accreditation for two agents at each collation centre.
The EC also confirmed that domestic and international observers will be accredited to monitor activities at the collation centres.
Additionally, media representatives will be granted accreditation to cover the collation process at constituency, regional, and national levels.
Discussions are ongoing with the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) to finalize the number of media houses to be accredited per collation centre.
Addressing concerns about shortfalls and discrepancies in ballot papers reported in the Volta and Bono regions, the EC explained that these issues were detected during standard verification procedures conducted in collaboration with political party representatives.
The Commission assured stakeholders that such checks are part of its accountability mechanisms to ensure that all ballot papers align with the statistics provided to printers and political parties.
The EC reiterated its commitment to conducting free, fair, and transparent elections, emphasizing its openness to collaboration with political parties, candidates, and observers.
It assured all stakeholders that these measures demonstrate its dedication to upholding the integrity of Ghana’s electoral process.