Election Petition 3rd Anniversary: what have we learnt?

Editorial
 
Today, Monday August 29, is exactly three years since the Supreme Court gave judgement on the election petition brought before it by Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the late Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. In a 5-4 majority decision, the court, presided over by Justice Atuguba, dismissed the case.

Though Nana Addo could have gone further to seek a review of the decision, he decided to let sleeping dogs lie. The press conference he organised to accept the verdict, even though he disagreed with it, calmed the tension that was building up in the country. On the day the judgement was given, all the streets of Accra were almost deserted, for the fear that no matter how the verdict would go, there would be mayhem in the country. But, thanks to the wise decision taken by Nana Addo and his team, this country is still one unit.

Whilst thanking the NPP flagbearer for enhancing our democracy, the third year anniversary must also be used to take stock of what led to the petition in the first place, and what must be done to avoid the past mistakes, by ensuring free, fair and transparent elections.

This position has already been strengthened by Nana Addo himself, in a statement which we have reproduced under this very column. Read him:

However, it must be pointed out that the sanctity of the ballot is, and must, be supreme. It is the expression of preference involved in the casting of the ballot that is sacred – the rest of the activities are, at best, administrative exercises. The count, the collation, the transmission and the declaration of results cannot, and should not, be more important than the sacred, God-given right of a citizen expressing his or her choice, represented by the casting of his or her ballot.

The strength of any democracy is very much determined by the credibility of its electoral system. It is in our collective interest that we ensure that the rules and regulations for the conduct of elections are fair and transparent, and that we all develop respect for them. There should be no lingering questions about the legitimacy of an election, and the winning candidate, at the end of the process, should receive the unalloyed support of all. That is how we can strengthen our democracy, and the peace and stability of our nation.

It is an undeniable fact that the opposition leader has hit the nail right on the head, and it is the duty of the Election Commission (EC), all the stakeholders, including the media, to ensure that the December poll is conducted in a fair and firm manner, so that both the victor and the vanquish would accept the outcome in good faith. The police must also ensure that anyone who tries to circumvent the rules, which could lead to the undermining of the final results, is arrested and made to face the full rigours of the law.

Ghana is a peaceful country with an excellent democratic practice, at least, when measured by the standard in Africa. All Ghanaians, therefore, have the civic duty of protecting the ballot to rekindle the hope the international community has in the country that our democracy has come of age.