Ghana Becareful With Jean Mensa–Akufo-Addo tells EC.

Ghana Becareful With Jean Mensa–Akufo-Addo tells EC.

The president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said the Electoral Commission (EC) should not be calling for the merger of small political parties. 

During her visit to the Jubilee House Thursday, the EC Chair Jean Mensa suggested for smaller political parties to merge.

But President Akufo-Addo was against it.

He believes the small parties should be allowed to decide on whether or not they want to become one and the EC should not interfere in it.

“I am not so sure that encouraging parties to merge is a part of the functions or remit of the electoral commission.

“Those decisions, I believe, are for the parties; yours is to provide the regulations and the ambit within which the parties can operate,” President Akufo-Addo said.

The EC Chair also gave an account of the Commission’s work in the past year since new commissioners were appointed.

Mrs Mensa noted that the conduct of the Referendum for the creation of the new regions, the by-election at Ayawaso West Wuogon, setting up a security taskforce ahead of the 2020 elections, and the authoring of a draft report for the implementation of the Representation of the Peoples’ Amendment Act (ROPAA), are among the things that have caught the attention of the EC over the course of the last year.

In addition, she noted that the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) has been institutionalised, with meetings held once every month to develop an agenda for constructive dialogue.

The EC, she noted, has also been engaged in streamlining the activities of the political parties to ensure parties submit their audited reports in a timely manner.

Describing the current audits being done as not up to international standards, Mrs. Mensa said the political parties will be guided and a proper framework for how the reviews should be done is being developed.

Whilst acknowledging the work done by her predecessors, Mrs. Mensa noted that she inherited a very weak institution.

Touching on the key reforms being undertaken at the Commission, President Akufo-Addo was pleased with the measures underway to institutionalize the role and operation of the IPAC.

He said IPAC, since its institution somewhere in 1996, has provided a welcome platform for all political parties to have their say and discuss with the commission directly matters as stakeholders, institutionalising them is very important.