Re-Organization Of District Assembly Elections Will Drain Nation Coffers

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The progressive minded Aspirants of Adobetor, New Lakpanaa, and Adiembra Electoral Areas of the La Dade-Kotopon District are calling on the general public to place an equal blame on the country?s Legislature for failing to alert the Electoral Commission (EC) on the maturity of the CI 85, which was earlier placed before Parliament for consideration.
wpid-Electoral-Commission-EC.jpgIn a press release, the group said, law makers are paid huge sums of money and are given allowances at their comfort in order to enable them make laws and to also monitor Constitutional issues across the country, and the Institutions involved. They failed this time around.

“If the EC is blamed today for their negligence, then the Country?s Legislature must also be blamed for carelessness. What were the over 270 lawmakers doing all this while? Are they part of the accused persons openly supporting candidates under political colours? Who should then do parliamentary business for them? All the Arms of Government and Agencies of Government must endeavor to do their work well; they must help save the public purse from unnecessary spending.”
The Political Parties, Civil Society Organizations who comment on political issues, and Legal practitioners in this country must also be blamed for not drawing the attention of the EC on this legal issue. The Political Parties, despite the Constitutional provision of making the District Assembly Elections non-partisan, are openly supporting candidates and even providing platforms for them.

They also averred that some Party commentators put undue pressure on the EC to be fast in organizing the elections. These persons heaped unprintable insults on the office of the EC boss, just to score political points. They cannot be recused from blame.
The EC, they said, must also be blamed for not looking at the Laws carefully before starting the process. “What was their Legal Team doing? Don?t they have Board Members who are Lawyers? Didn?t they offer them advice before the opening of Nominations? Why didn?t they also consult before taking actions?
We therefore, are all to blame.”
“……….We also call for the outright rejection of the printing of New Ballot papers which would cost the nation huge sums of money. We urge the Judiciary, Electoral Commission, Political leaders, Civil Society Organizations and all who have the country at heart to openly advocate for the running of the elections despite the Court?s ruling, since laws are made for people;they should ask for the tempering of justice with prudence, since huge sums of money are involved.”

They raised certain issues indicating that:

1.. The country must not spend any pesewa in reprinting ballot papers for the District Assembly Elections; we as a nation must use the already printed papers.

2. That a new date be fixed for the process (Elections).
3. That adverts be re-run to enable massive turnout on the newly fixed date.
4. That the aggrieved Aspirant and his Electoral Area be treated as a special case and all necessary measures be taken to ensure justice.

The country, they noted, is facing many challenges and she cannot waste huge sums of money on some things without prudence being exercised and that there are lots of poor, needy, sick, uneducated, disabled, etc, in society who need a massive push up.

Therefore, going to restart the electoral process and to reprint new ballot papers, conduct new adverts, and retrain Election Officers would drain the country?s coffers.

“We therefore ask that Justice be tempered with Prudence. Let us adopt the Consequentialists? argument which preaches that a country must take actions which make majority of the population happy. There are places where we are lacking potable drinking water, Public Toilet facilities, Community Health Centres, Markets, Lorry parks, Agro-processing Industries, and many basic social amenities. The country can do better if monies are channeled into these areas, rather than re-printing ballot papers; a complete waste in the face of ?borrowed democracy?

Source: spyGhana.com

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