Parliament Has No Power To Investigate Electoral Commission – CODEO

Project lead for the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), Paul Nana Kwabena Aborampah Mensah has disagreed with the Minority MPs’ demand for a bi-partisan committee to thoroughly review the processes and the procedures adopted by the Electoral Commission in the 2020 elections.

 

 

Five NDC MPs have filed a private motion for a comprehensive probe into the 2020 general elections.

Mr. Aborampah Mensah believes that the Minority MPs’ requests in the motion have already been dealt with by the Supreme Court during the 2020 election petition.

Speaking on Top Story, Tuesday, he asserted that Parliament has no power to investigate the Electoral Commission, particularly when the NDC lacks evidence to support its allegations of unfair elections.

“We can never investigate Electoral Commission, I don’t know where that mandate is coming from. So when I read the motion, I told myself is this not the same points that were taken to court and the Supreme Court dealt with them?

 

“Are these not the same points that there were not even evidence to support? So what will be the credibility and essence of going through the same thing that the Supreme Court of the land has already adjudicated? … I don’t think Parliament has the power to investigate the Electoral Commission,” he told Evans Mensah.

 

He, however, expressed the view that the bi-partisan committee could rather recommend electoral reforms for the Electoral Commission and not investigate the Commission.

“Maybe if the Committee is set up to go through some of these allegations to recommend reforms for that, I will understand, because even independent organisations and Civil Society Organisations like CODEO, we had our post-election evaluations and we came up with some recommendations to the Electoral Commission,” he added.

Meanwhile, one of the MPs who filed the motion, Buem MP, Kofi Adams explained that the motion is to ensure that the shortcomings and setbacks of the 2020 election are not repeated in any national election in the country.

 

He noted that the Committee will also propose reforms for the EC, stressing that although the NDC as a party, has already submitted a document to the EC suggesting reforms, it does not prevent the House from probing matters related to the 2020 elections.

“It will result in reforms. Well, it doesn’t stop a state institution like Parliament which is an arm of government from going into such matters. The fact that the party has put together a proposal and submitted it to Electoral Commission, it doesn’t stop Parliament from going ahead to do its own work,” he said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source:  MyJoyOnline