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Election 2024: Live telecast of IPAC meeting will ensure transparency – NDC
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has reiterated its call for a live broadcast of the upcoming Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, October 1, as part of its commitment to ensuring transparency in Ghana’s electoral process.
This request follows a prior rejection by the Electoral Commission (EC), which declined a similar appeal from the NDC to televise discussions about discrepancies found in the Provisional Voters Register (PVR).
In a brief press statement issued on Monday, September 30, the EC urged all stakeholders attending Tuesday’s critical IPAC meeting to present evidence and data to support any discrepancies or concerns they have with the PVR.
The Commission emphasised that this collaborative approach would help address outstanding issues with the voters’ register.
The EC also noted that, despite repeated requests, the NDC has yet to provide the data backing its claims of discrepancies, for which the party is demanding a forensic audit of the PVR.
Speaking to Citi News, the NDC’s Deputy Director of Elections and IT, Dr Tanko Rashid Computer, stressed that broadcasting the meeting live is crucial to gaining the trust and confidence of the Ghanaian public.
“We think that it’s very important we have this live broadcast because of the enormity of the issues at stake. Because the 2024 general elections hinge on the register, everything about the election is about a credible register,” he said.
According to him,“EC according to their response to us, is that we should come and they will indicate to us how they have resolved all the issues we are raising, then it is important that the media comes along to see what we are doing.”
He said,“Because it is this transparency everybody is looking for that is why we have sent them, it is an open-ended invitation we have given to them, and they should allow the media in. Why are they running away from the media if they don’t have anything to hide?.”
Source: Citinewsroom
President John Dramani Mahama over the weekend inspected ongoing works on a 6,000-birds-per-hour meat processing factory at Bechem in the Ahafo Region.
The facility, being developed by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, is a key component of government’s broader strategy to achieve self-sufficiency in poultry production and reduce Ghana’s heavy dependence on imported chicken.
President Mahama, who toured the site to assess the pace of work, was briefed by the project contractor that the factory is currently 50 percent complete.
The contractor assured the President that construction would be fully completed by March next year.
He further disclosed that all required equipment for the processing plant has already been procured and is ready for installation once the building works are finished.
Once operational, the factory is expected to significantly boost local poultry processing capacity, create jobs and support poultry farmers within the Bechem enclave and beyond.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
Newly appointed Electoral Commission (EC) Deputy Chairperson Joseph Kwaku Asamoah has pledged to work towards restoring public confidence in the Commission, describing it as an obligation he and his colleagues must fulfil.
Speaking after his appointment by President John Dramani Mahama, he said the Commission would work closely with its staff to review electoral processes and pursue continuous improvements.
He said the Commission was committed to delivering its mandate without fear or favour, stressing that every Ghanaian mattered.
According to Mr Asamoah, restoring public trust was particularly important because confidence in the Electoral Commission had fallen to its lowest level in more than two decades.
Citing Afrobarometer data, he said only 33 per cent of Ghanaians expressed some or a lot of trust in the Commission, compared with 75 per cent in 2005 and 63 per cent in 1999.
He described the figures as a call to action, insisting that rebuilding public confidence was not optional but an obligation imposed on the Commission.
Mr Asamoah identified misinformation, disinformation and fake news as major challenges facing electoral processes in modern times.
He warned that false information could undermine political interests and deepen divisions in the country, while calling for responsible use of new media to promote civic education and encourage public participation, particularly among young people.
He stressed that credible elections were not the responsibility of the Electoral Commission alone but a national duty requiring the involvement of political parties, Parliament, the security services, the judiciary, civil society organisations, the media and every citizen.
He therefore called on all stakeholders to work together with the Commission to strengthen Ghana’s electoral processes and restore public confidence.
By: Jacob Aggrey
