The Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, has raised serious concerns over mounting calls for the dismissal of the leadership of Ghana’s Electoral Commission (EC), warning that such demands could undermine the country’s democratic institutions and set a perilous precedent.
In an interview with Citi FM on Thursday, 26 June, the MP criticised recent remarks by National Democratic Congress (NDC) Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, who had called for the removal of EC Chairperson Jean Mensa and her deputies.
According to Nana Awuah, these calls form part of a growing trend of politically motivated attacks on independent state institutions.
“We should be worried because it is an indication of things to come. They told us they were going to remove the Chief Justice, and it happened. It was the same Asiedu Nketiah, subsequently echoed by his deputy, Mustapha Gbande, and we are all witnesses to what is going on,” he cautioned.
Nana Awuah stressed that this latest demand targeting the EC leadership reflects an even more alarming political direction.
“Today, they are telling us they think the EC and her deputies should be removed. It is an indication of what lies ahead,” he warned, suggesting that such attempts threaten the impartiality and stability of critical state institutions.
The Manhyia South MP further questioned the long-term implications of politicising appointments to key democratic offices.
“The fundamental question will be, whose interest is this going to serve? Are we going to get to the point where every government comes in with its own Chief Justice and Electoral Commission? Is that good for our democracy? It is very dangerous. We shouldn’t encourage it,” he argued.
Nana Awuah’s comments follow indications by Johnson Asiedu Nketiah on 25 June, while he was on JoyNews PM Express, to the effect that the EC’s top leadership must be axed, citing what he described as a pattern of incompetence.
Among his claims were the disenfranchisement of the SALL constituency during the 2020 elections and the unresolved parliamentary dispute in Ablekuma North—both of which, he argued, highlight the EC’s failure to uphold electoral credibility under Jean Mensa’s leadership.
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