<<Print>>

A Lawyer and Former PNC MP for Zebila, Mr. John Ndebugri, has backed the decision of the Nana Konadu for 2012 Campaign Team to sue the NDC�s Election Committee if it goes ahead with plans to allow delegates at the upcoming congress to vote on regional basis. There are reports the NDC may be introducing ten ballot boxes for delegates from each region to vote simultaneously at the Sunyani Congress. But the campaign team of the Former First Lady have kicked against the move and have petitioned the party General Secretary. They have threatened to resort to the Courts to halt the process, if the party goes ahead with the intended plan. According to them, �any votes undertaken regionally would be unacceptable for the simple reason that it would be unfair for any candidate to know which region voted for him or her. This would result in the intimidation of the Regions that would be concerned about the repercussions of voting for a particular candidate. These actions are contrary to democracy and will not foster national unity. �Voting should not be carried out regionally; ballot boxes should not be identified by Region. But it appears the party�s leadership may want to go ahead with the plan. NDC General Secretary, Mr. Asiedu Nketia, has explained that the process is not unconstitutional. Speaking to Citi News on Wednesday June 22, Mr. John Ndebugri, a member of the opposition NPP, said the regional voting approach with separate ballot boxes infringes on the constitutional rights of the voter. He said Article 49 Clause (1) of the 1992 Constitution clearly states that at any public election or referendum, voting shall be by secret ballot, whiles Article 55 Clause (5) also states that the internal organisation of a political party shall conform to democratic principles and its actions and purposes shall not contravene or be inconsistent with this Constitution or any other law�. According to him, Article 49 implies that when only about 3,000 delegates are to vote to elect a political party�s presidential candidate, it must be done in one ballot box. He said the allocation of ten ballot boxes for 3,000 delegates from the ten regions will undermine secret ballot under Article 49, because the contestants would know exactly how people voted. �In any case, if they are trying to compare it to what the NPP did in electing our Presidential candidate, it became necessary for the election to be held in the various constituencies for the results to be collated, because we had increased the size of our electoral college to 120,000. But with 3,000 delegates, they should be able to vote in one box and declare the results by 5:00pm. I think that if they try to introduce ten boxes, they are trying to threaten the delegates that if they don�t vote wisely, then we will get to know how you voted and deal with you. They (Mills camp) are going about saying they will win by 85% so why are they introducing this backward system of voting� he asked. �Once they are carrying everybody to Sunyani, there should be one box in which everybody will place their vote which is not marked, so that secret ballot will be respected. So I am calling on them to do that, otherwise I advice very strongly Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings to proceed as fast as possible to the Court to restrain them from doing something that is unconstitutional�. But a Member of the NDC Legal Team, Mr. Chris Ackummey, has told Citi News the introduction of separate ballot boxes for the 10 regions cannot be considered undemocratic. According to him, it is always possible to determine voting patterns regardless of how elections are organised. He noted that the NDC will not victimize any group of voters as a result of the voting pattern.