EC ignored “many material anomalies” to announce election results – Kpessa-Whyte
Dr Michael Kpessa-Whyte, one of the witnesses for the NDC’s flagbearer in the 2020 polls, has faulted the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) for shelving detected errors that affected the NDC’s fortunes.
This was contained in a witness statement filed at the Supreme Court in the ongoing election petition.
Former President Mahama is seeking to overturn the results announced in favour of the NPP by the EC.
Dr Kpessa-Whyte said that as one of Mr Mahama’s representatives in the EC’s ‘Strongroom’, he noticed many material irregularities during the entire December 7 election process.
Consequently, with his colleague representative at the ‘strong room’, Mr Robert Joseph Mettle-Nunoo, he brought these material irregularities to the immediate attention of the Petitioner and the NDC.
He said based on their observation of the many material anomalies in the collation of votes in the ‘strongroom’ and the subsequent report of same to the Petitioner and the NDC. The party immediately caused a letter to be written to the First Respondent (Mrs Jean Mensa), detailing some of the Petitioner’s and the NDC’s concerns.
According to him, the EC Chair assured them of delaying the announcement of the 2020 election results until the issue had been resolved.
However, on their blind side, Mrs Mensa hurriedly proceeded to announce the results on December 9, based on the “self-same errors that we had discovered during our tenure in the ‘strongroom’.
Dr Kpessa-Whyte, a lecturer at the University of Ghana, explained that they never received any feedback from the EC as she had promised on the concerns of the NDC till date.
“I am still waiting for Mrs Jean Adukwei Mensa, Chairperson of the 1st respondent and the Returning Officer for the President Election, to acknowledged her unconstitutional conduct on 9th December 2020,” he pointed out in his statement to the Supreme Court, dated January 27, 2021.
What were the concerns raised?
In the letter addressed to the EC dated December 9, the NDC said among others that:
-In the Eastern Region, the presidential election results, which were collated and signed by all the parties, were not the ones that were transmitted to the EC office in Accra.
-Also in the Ashanti Region, the NDC argued that there were disparities between individual pink sheets and what had been collated for the final results.
– The NDC raised similar concerns over results in Tarkwa, Sefwi Wiawso, Upper Denkyira and Techiman South.
-Additionally, they had concerns about “intimidation” by the military, which they described as unprecedented.