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Ghana’s Electoral Commission (EC) has made a big move to increase transparency by letting journalists watch how ballots are printed at three important locations.
Acts Commercial, Buck Press, and Inolink Printing Limited are among the ballot printing facilities as Ghana prepares for the general elections on December 7.
The action is intended to increase public trust and show the EC’s dedication to a safe and transparent electoral process, Dr. Benjamin Bannor-Bio, Director of Electoral Services for the EC, emphasized.
Following the death of Akua Donkor, the flagbearer for the Ghana Freedom Party, the production of presidential ballots has been temporarily halted for ten days, according to Dr. Bannor-Bio, meaning that only parliamentary ballots are currently being printed.
“When we say transparency and accountability are in motion, we don’t just say it but we mean it,” Dr. Bannor-Bio stated.
“The Electoral Commission of Ghana is one of the few election management institutions in the sub-region that prints ballot papers in the country,” pointing out that Buck Press prints ballots for the Central, Oti, Savannah, and Ashanti regions.
Every step of the printing process is attended by officials of political parties who confirm information like serial numbers and amounts particular to each constituency.
According to Dr. Bannor-Bio, “We are here to inform you that ballot printing is not done in secret.” In order to “ensure that the right thing is done,” he said, “we open up to the public so you know that we are doing it together with the political party agents.”
In addition, the party agents seal ballot batches with their own seals, keeping their own records in addition to the EC’s.
“Apart from the electoral commission seal, they add their seal and take records of the same. So, in printing ballot papers, there is no secrecy; it’s so transparent,” r. Bannor-Bio stated.
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com
