ELECTIONS 2016: EC Notifies Disqualified Presidential Candidates Of Nomination Requirements

The Electoral Commission (EC) on Monday issued letters to the presidential aspirants who were disqualified from contesting this year’s presidential election, pointing out specific requirements regarding their nominations.

The commission also handed the nomination forms to them to effect the corrections. 

The parties are the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), the National Democratic Party (NDP), the All People’s Congress (APC), the People’s National Convention (PNC) and the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP).

Others are the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), the United Progressive Party (UPP), the Reformed Patriotic Democrats (RPD), the United Front Party (UFP) and the Independent People’s Party (IPP).

Representatives of the parties expressed frustration at the process but indicated that they would study the letters and decide whether or not to go back to the Supreme Court today for further directives.

The NDP General Secretary, Alhaji Mohammed Frimpong, is one of the representatives who held that view.

Lawyers for the PPP were at the EC but they did not speak to the media, saying they could not speak to the issues until they had read the details in the EC letter.

Barely an hour after the Supreme Court had ordered the EC to give the opportunity to presidential aspirants who were disqualified from contesting the 2016 presidential elections to correct errors on their nomination forms, some of the parties rushed to the EC to take their nomination forms. 

The EC disqualified 12 of the 17 presidential aspirants who filed their nominations to contest the December 7 presidential election for various errors on their nomination forms. 

Some of the disqualified aspirants took legal action against the EC, seeking to be reinstated.

Subsequently, the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) and the APC won their cases at the High Court, a development that required the EC to reinstate them. 

The EC, however, went to the Supreme Court to seek a reversal of the High Court ruling, but the apex court affirmed the earlier ruling by the High Court and ordered the EC to allow the parties to correct their errors within two days.

Reports say the affected parties are at the EC Headquarters this morning making corrects to meet the deadline of 5pm Today.


GBC