A Fair And Peaceful Election Is The Crown Jewel Of A True Democracy

Elections occupy a position of special importance in modern democratic governance because it is primarily through this process that the will of the people is unequivocally conveyed. Hence, electoral malfeasance is an indefensible breach of the people’s self-determination right.

Elections give meaning to the concept of political representation and the protection of the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Constitution of Ghana. It is therefore not surprising that so much public interest and attention are focused on the conduct of elections.

A common cause of political strife and instability in Africa is the widespread occurrence of electoral malpractices which call the results of elections into question and lead the losing political parties to refuse to accept the election results and often explore unconstitutional means of redressing the balance. Evidence abounds that poorly managed elections can lead to catastrophic outcomes.

Election-related violent conflicts have occurred in Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Benin, Kenya, Zimbabwe etc. On this note, the relatively peaceful nature of the recently held elections in Nigeria is worth emulating. The aforementioned is without prejudice to the horrific violence perpetrated by the terrorist group Boko Haram during the elections.

Although we remain thankful that Ghana’s past elections have never degenerated into massive conflicts, we cannot gloss over the fact that these elections have brought us close to the brink of violent conflict. Our elections have been characterized by panic, gloom and doom scenarios. Underlying this needless elevation of the political temperature is an electoral process that many are suspicious of, that is prone to too much systematic irregularities and that is subject to partisan manipulation.

Electoral malpractices and irregularities may be and are often masterminded by political parties, but the men and women who commit them are individual citizens who are prepared to cheat or to be used by others for the purpose of gaining an unfair advantage over their political opponents.

The Electoral Commission, however efficient it may be, cannot handle the problem alone. In the final analysis, it is the ordinary citizens themselves, operating as the eyes and ears of the Electoral Commission, who are best placed to serve as guarantors of free, fair and violent free elections, regardless of their particular political affiliations and interest.

Hence, as we gradually gear towards 2016, we must realize that each and every campaign speech, political radio contribution, newspaper article and public statement will eventually determine whether the National Presidential and Parliamentary Elections were truly the crown jewel of our established democracy.

Contact:
Mr. Ernest Twum
Policy Advisor and Researcher
CiPED Movement
[email protected]
www.cipedghana.org
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