Politics of Monday, 16 February 2015
Source: myjoyonline.com
Upper West regional director of the Electoral Commission, Serebour Quaicoe has admitted that the commission can only disqualify candidates in the upcoming district elections who are clearly campaigning on the ticket of political parties and not candidates simply perceived to be doing so.
Mr. Serebour made the statement at a workshop organized for marginalized groups in the upper west region.
Responding to arguments by participants insisting that persons affiliated with political parties should not be permitted to stand for assembly positions, Mr Serebour explained that legally, these persons are permitted to stand, provided that they do not flaunt their political affiliation.
A candidate may be an NDC man, may be an NPP man but when he/she is campaigning, must campaign in their own name, he said, adding that so long as the candidate does not impugn the rules, the commission cannot disqualify them.
The workshop brought together marginalised groups like the physically challenged, visual and hearing impaired persons and was aimed at sensitising them in the electoral process, in the hopes that they will in turn do same for their peers in order to improve confidence in the electoral system.
It also created an opportunity for the visually impaired to be taken through the process of voting unaided through the tactile ballot.
It is hoped that voters will turn out in their numbers to select their representatives in the district level elections which come off on March 3, 2015.