Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan, the Electoral Commissioner, is insisting that if he is to implement all the recommendations and advice meted out to his organization after the election 2012 faux pas, he would need to be fully and adequately resourced.
According to our sources in parliament, Dr. Afari Gyan did not mince words by stating that, adequate resources would be required by the commission to be able to undertake its activities actively, effectively and efficiently.
Snippets of Information also available to the Daily Searchlight indicate that, the chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan confirmed that he will retire next year.
Mr. Afari Gyan who appeared before a Committee of the Whole of parliament on Wednesday, told Members of Parliament that he would retire and would not accept any offer of an extension of contract to his tenure in office as Electoral Commissioner.
The Electoral Commissioner, who turned 69 on Wednesday, would be 70 years next year, a year which would see the end of his contract and tenure as EC Boss.
His interaction with MPs was to indicate to Members initiatives undertaken by the commission to deepen public confidence in Ghana’s electoral process. Responding to that, sources reveal that, the EC Boss noted that, he intends to undertake structural and administrative changes to help deepen public confidence in the commission.
Structurally, the Electoral Commissioner told Members of Parliament that, his outfit would depend on laws promulgated by Parliament and agreed on by the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) to help deal with such public confidence issues.
Answering a question on how the issue of voter verification and others were flouted resulting in the election petition, he said, Parliament can consider amending the C.I 75 to help address some of these issues.
As regards the administrative measures, Dr. Afari Gyan told MPs he would rely on three of the documented recommendations by Mr. Justice Dotse and six recommendations by Mr. Justice Atuguba in their verdict on the election petition.
He noted further that, copies of the recommendations have been given to all the political parties. He also left a copy of the recommendations for Parliament. He asserted that he intends to combine the aforementioned with other acceptable administrative practices to help rebuild the public’s confidence in the EC before he retires next year.
As regards the conduct of the District and Local Assembly Elections, he noted that, latest by April next year, the elections would be held.