The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, John Dramani Mahama, has cautioned the New Patriotic Party and the Electoral Commission that the party will resist every attempt to steal the elections.

Addressing the press on Tuesday, Mr Mahama also debunked suggestions on social media that he had conceded defeat to the NPP flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

“I state emphatically and firmly that I have not congratulated anybody,” Mr Mahama said adding that such claims should be utterly dismissed.

He added that “we will resist any attempt to steal this elections,” adding that the NDC has won majority in Parliament and over 10 regions.

The former President also accused President Akufo-Addo of using the military in an attempt to change results in the Techiman constituency after a scuffle led to the shooting of two people.

The former President also thanked Ghanaians for giving the NDC a winning majority in Parliament.

Results of the Monday Parliamentary and Presidential elections are still being collated across the country. A planned results declaration by the Electoral Commission has been postponed. The ruling party says it has secured enough seats to form the next government.

Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM

Government has described as irresponsible calls by the opposition National Democratic Congress that its members should pour out and jubilate over the results 2020 polls.

Former President Mahama in a terse address Tuesday night said the NDC won the elections and will not allow “anyone to steal the ballot”.

Mr. Mahama also reiterated the party’s claim that they have won the majority in parliament.

However reacting to the claim, Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said the utterances of the former President are unfortunate.

“A claim by Mr Mahama that his party has won parliamentary majority is false. So it is important that this claim is shot down now. The figure the electoral commission is putting out is very clear and we want everyone and the international community to take note of it,” the Ofoase Ayirebi MP said.

He stressed: “It is must be said that it is utterly irresponsible for Mr Mahama to ask his supporters to get out there and jubilate. That is contrary to the Peace Pact that was signed by Presidential candidates before the elections. So his actions go against what he himself signed on to as a candidate”.

Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission (EC) has extended its timeline for results declaration for the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary polls.

The EC had sent out invitation for the event which was scheduled for 5pm Tuesday in line with its projections before the polls.

However, in a statement, the EC said it was shifting the announcement to a latter period to enable them efficiently collate the results.

Background

The electoral commission last month defended its decision to announce the results of the December 7 presidential elections within 24 hours.

The NDC has kicked against any hasty decision from the EC following its earlier announcement.

But addressing the media, Chairperson for the commission Madam Jean Mensa assured adequate measures have been deployed to ensure timely transmissions of all sixteen regions.

She also noted that the CI 127 governing the elections allows for constituency results to be sent to the regions for subsequent forwarding to the EC head office unlike before when the head office received results directly.

According to her, the EC has the confidence of meeting the said target of calling the elections within twenty-four hours

She quizzed “if you have the results, why sit on it. Why sit on the results when you have the result?” adding that,  “we all know that our media houses have in the past been able to present the results within some ten hours of the poll, and so if you put in place systems to ensure that you receive the results on time, why the panic?”.

 

Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM

The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) parliamentary candidate for Navrongo Central, Tangoba Abayage, has conceded defeat ahead of the official declaration of the parliamentary results.

In a Facebook post, Tangoba Abayage who is also the Upper East Regional Minister stated that she had lost the seat to the men in the race. Officials results for that constituency are yet to be announced.

According to her, the collation of results from the various polling stations in the constituency points towards her defeat.

Her main contender was Sampson Chiragia of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Tangoba Abayage beat Mr. Adda who is the incumbent in the NPP primaries ahead of the 2020 election.

Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM

According to the former Agric Minister, the Nana Addo led administration has failed the people, leaving them agitated -a situation he says would motivate residents to go all out to vote against government.

He noted that government has mismanaged the economy since coming into office in 2017.

He said, “…definitely there is an agitation for change here and of course, our people in Ketu South and most part of the region feel that even more because they want to see a real change that will bring complete acceleration; not plenty talks but real action.”

On the military deployment, the MP said, “No amount of intimidation is going to prevent our people from doing what they have to do and so the people who are so scared of losing and are employing these tactics would not be successful. I mean our people are fearless, they have legitimate reasons to go all out and vote.”

The MP made the statement in Aflao on Friday, during the commissioning ceremony of a 3-unit classroom block built from the MPs Common Fund for the Duta basic school.

While charging residents to go all out and vote for the NDC’s flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama and Dzifa Abla Gomashie as the next MP for Ketu South, the two time MP also commissioned a warehouse for market women in the Aflao market and another maternity block project at Nogokpo.

The issue of military deployment into the Volta region since March this year, remains a raging debate as residents continue to accuse government of attempting to suppress them during the December 7th polls.

Just yesterday, the Volta regional house of chiefs in one of its many press statements expressed discontent over the issue while urging residents to go all out and vote on Monday.

But the MP believes none of that would stop residents of Ketu South from going out to vote out the Nana Addo led administration.

Source: Starrfm.com.gh/103.5fm

A statement by the EC after an IPAC meeting on Wednesday said, “All Political Parties have today, during an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting, agreed with the Commission’s proposal to the Chief of Staff of Ghana and the Ministry of the Interior to gazette Monday 7th December, 2020 a Statutory Public Holiday.

“The Commission’s proposal seeks to give Registered Voters the opportunity to devote the day to exercise their civic right and responsibility to vote during the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary Elections.

“Present at the meeting were representatives of all the Political Parties, Civil Society Organisation’s (CSO’s) and Development Partners.”

Registered Voters are expected to vote to choose a President and new Parliamentarians on Monday, December 7 between 7:00am and 5:00pm.

 

Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM

The policy proposals dubbed ‘Kyemu Pe’ and ‘Fa Ninyinaa’ will see the full absorption of fees for all fresh tertiary students admitted from the 2020/21 academic year should the party win power on December 7.

A presser signed by the general secretary for the union Divine Edem Kwadzodeh and made available to starrfm.com.gh read “Indeed, the National Union of Ghana Students has since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic variously advocated for the absorption of fees for tertiary students to help mitigate the economic impact the pandemic has had on working families and students.”

“It is therefore commendable on the part of the National Democratic Congress and its Flagbearer to heed to the calls by students of this country and announce such progressive policies aimed at ensuring universal access to tertiary education for all, even as the pandemic rages.”

The statement continued “the Union has also taken note of the proposal to make tertiary education free for all students living with disabilities, and wishes to commend the NDC for the announcement of same. The Union is particularly happy that a clear funding
source, (i.e. the Annual Budget Funding Amount (ABFA) sourced from Ghana’s
oil revenues), for these programs, has been announced by the Flagbearer of the
NDC.”

It added “this, we believe provides enough clarity as to the source of funds for the
implementation of these programs. The National Union of Ghana Students will hold the NDC and its Flagbearer accountable in the fulfillment of these policy propositions should they win the forthcoming elections; and will demand that they are implemented to the benefit and satisfaction of the good tertiary students of this country.”

Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM