EC criticizes Mahama over “false” claims on recruitment of Returning Officers
The Electoral Commission (EC) has strongly rejected allegations made by National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer John Dramani Mahama in relation to the appointment of Returning Officers for the 2024 polls.
Mr Mahama in a recent interview at the London School of Economics and Political Science, accused the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government of appointing its members to the EC.
He further questioned EC’s fairness in the forthcoming elections alleging the EC had requested MPs and DCEs to names NPP members during the recruitment of Returning Officers and their deputies.
But the Deputy Director of Research, Monitoring, and Evaluation of the EC, Fred Tetteh in a statement dated April 25, 2024, rubbished the claims.
He slammed Mahama for condemning a method he had used while in office as President.
The EC further stated that the recruitment process for Returning Officers and their Deputies was done in a fair and transparent manner.
“Per the attached public announcement, the Commission invited ALL interested Ghanaians to apply for the positions of Returning Officers and Deputy Returning Officers. The allegation by former President Mahama that Ministers and DCEs were asked “to write the names of party apparatchiks and present them so that they would be appointed as the returning officers” IS NOT TRUE.
“The Commission rejects this unfounded allegation coming from the former President. The process of recruiting Returning Officers and their Deputies was conducted in an open, fair and transparent manner. Following the publication of the vacancy announcement in the Daily Graphic on the 5th of February 2024, the Commission received a total of 20,561 applications.
“An in-house Committee was established to shortlist suitable applicants to be interviewed. For the information of the general public, all successful applicants at the interview have no less than 8 years of working experience with the Commission as Temporal Election Officials.”
