The Electoral Commission (EC) has suspended the collation of election results for the Ablekuma North Constituency due to concerns over security and procedural breaches at its Greater Accra Regional Office.
It called on political parties to withdraw their supporters from collation centres and urged cooperation to restore order.
In a statement, the Commission cited instances of party supporters besieging collation centres, threatening and assaulting EC staff, and destroying electoral materials.
“We have observed escalating incidents of violence, including the destruction of ballot papers and pink sheets, as well as physical abuse of our staff. These actions undermine the integrity of the electoral process and violate the legal framework governing elections,” the statement said.
The Commission emphasized its commitment to upholding electoral laws, particularly C.I. 127, which requires that collation be conducted by a Returning Officer with two representatives from each political party present.
“Contrary to the legal requirements, supporters of some political parties have been forcing our staff to declare results that do not align with the documented pink sheets. This is unacceptable,” the EC added.
The Commission stressed similar incidents in other constituencies, including Dome Kwabenya, Okaikwei Central, Tema Central, and Ayensuano, where collation centres were vandalized and sensitive materials destroyed.
The EC quizzed why destroying documents that confirm the outcome of the election and indicated such actions disrupt the process and cast doubt on the credibility of results.
“We are working with security agencies and political party leadership to ensure that collation resumes under safe and lawful conditions. We anticipate that the collation in Ablekuma North will recommence in the next few hours,” the Commission assured.
It reiterated its commitment to transparency and safeguarding the will of the people as expressed in the polls.
It assured the public it was not hindering the collation of results and that the sole objective is to guarantee that the legal processes are followed to reflect the true choice of the citizens.
