Member of Parliament for Ketu North, Edem Agbana, has renewed calls for reforms at the Electoral Commission (EC), declaring that the current leadership of the election management body is not fit for purpose and lacks the independence needed to safeguard Ghana’s democracy.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Big Issue on Saturday, July 5, he argued that the EC, as presently constituted, cannot be trusted to conduct fair and transparent elections, and must undergo significant changes to restore public confidence.
“We have maintained our position that the current Electoral Commission, for us, is not fit for purpose. There must be some changes in it. It is important for us to build the institution to be strong and truly independent, but the current composition we have will not allow us to describe this EC as truly independent,” he said.
His comments follow the EC’s announcement of a rerun of the parliamentary election in 19 polling stations within the Ablekuma North Constituency. The Commission’s decision was made public in a July 2 statement signed by Deputy Chairman of Operations, Samuel Tettey, after a meeting with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on July 1.
The rerun, scheduled for Friday, July 11, 2025, stems from a months-long standoff between the two main political parties over the credibility of the results from the December 7, 2024, parliamentary elections.
The NDC had challenged the EC’s reliance on scanned Pink Sheets from all 37 polling stations in the constituency, alleging that they lacked proper verification and were suspiciously submitted by the NPP. The party demanded a full rerun in all affected stations.
The NPP, however, argued that only three polling stations were in dispute, maintaining that the remaining scanned results had been verified by agents of both parties before disruptions at the collation centre.
The Electoral Commission explained that the original documents were destroyed when supporters of both parties invaded the collation centre, forcing officials to rely on scanned versions. After further review, the EC opted for a rerun in the 19 most contentious polling stations to uphold the integrity of the process.
While welcoming the decision to hold a rerun, Mr. Agbana said the NDC is fully prepared to mobilise support and reclaim the seat.
“We welcome the decision to rerun the election in 19 polling stations. We will go into the election with all our force and campaign by entering every home in Ablekuma North to ensure that we win that seat,” he said.
Commenting on reports that the NPP has boycotted the rerun to pursue legal action, he added: “The NPP can decide to boycott it, that’s up to them. They can go to court. But whatever the case, I am assuring you that the Ablekuma North seat will certainly come to the NDC because we worked for it.”
The EC has promised to conduct a fair, transparent, and credible process. The Ghana Police Service has also been assigned to provide security and ensure peace at all 19 polling stations during the rerun.
However, Edem Agbana has stated the Electoral Commission’s decision to rerun elections in 19 polling stations in Ablekuma North does not go far enough to repair the trust of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), describing the move as insufficient to make up for what he calls years of institutional failure.
