The National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for the recent Kumawu by-election, Kwasi Amankwaa, has been shown by the Electoral Commission to not be a registered voter in the constituency despite filing and running in the by-election.
According to the EC, Mr. Kwasi Amankwaa is a registered voter in the Greater Accra district of Ayawaso West Wuogon, but he ran in the Kumawu by-election anyway since he is a resident of the district.
The Commission questioned why the opposition did not voice similar concerns in Kumawu in response to claims made by the opposition NDC that the EC is collaborating with the NPP to secretly register a voter in Assin North.
Why was this problem not brought up by the NDC before the Kumawu Constituency By-Election? The claim made by Sammy Gyamfi that the EC is collaborating with the NPP to secretly register a voter in Assin North is false, but it still stands as a matter of truth. It is false, and we challenge Sammy Gyamfi to demonstrate it, according to the statement.
The Commission argues that throughout the years, Sammy Gyamfi and the NDC have spread untrue allegations intended to defame the EC's credibility.
"Their plea to the Supreme Court after the 2020 elections, in which they claimed to have won the elections, made this clear. It is commonly known that they were unable to back their claims with proof in court.
"This latest accusation is nothing new. It is a fabrication of the National Communication Officer, wholly unjustified and without foundation. All well-meaning Ghanaians are urged to disregard it.
"Ghana's democracy has matured, and we urge Sammy Gyamfi to speak honestly, maturely, and with decorum when he discusses the EC. We kindly request that he leave the EC alone and go out and campaign.
Following the release of an earlier statement to address a related claim, the EC published a statement on June 6, 2023, to address Sammy Gyamfi's complaint.
The Commission previously informed the National Communication Officer that a person is eligible to run for office under Article 94 of the 1992 Constitution.
As long as a person is a registered voter, at least 21 years old, and either comes from, is a resident of, or has lived in the constituency for a total of five (5) years in the ten (10) years before the election they intend to run in, they are eligible to run for office. This is the stance of Ghana's foundational law, the Constitution of 1992.
"In his answer, the National Communication Officer of the DC asserts that the EC simply used the 1992 Constitution to support its argument that a person need not be a registered voter in the constituency in which he or she wishes to run for office.
He claims that before coming to the decision that a person need not be a registered voter in the same constituency he or she wishes to fight, the EC should have additionally relied on CI 127 and, in particular, the Nomination Form included in CI 127.
He argues that the phrase "of the same Constituency" on the Parliamentary Nomination Form should take precedence over the Constitution in order to make the point that a candidate for a parliamentary election must be a registered voter in the same Constituency that he or she intends to run in. This claim is false.
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