The Electoral Commission (EC) has defended its request to move the dates of the Presidential and Parliamentary elections from December 7 to November 7, 2024.
The EC claimed that the idea, originally proposed by the political parties, intends to provide enough time for the commission to adequately manage its activities, particularly in the case of a run-off.
The recommendations were presented during the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting on Monday, January 22, 2024.
The EC also wants election days to be declared national holidays to increase public engagement in the political process.
Bossman Asare, Deputy Commissioner of the Commission, stated that negotiations will resume next week.
“The people who attended the IPAC meeting made it very clear that this is something they are in full support of; they are in sync with the EC. But it also requires that they go back and report to their party leadership to hear their views so that when they come to present the official position of their parties. This is something we are ready to meet them next week again for another meeting because we made it clear that this proposal came from you, and we think it is the right time to implement it.”
“We want to know what you think. If the parties say it’s not something they are interested in, the EC doesn’t have a problem at all. We are not doing it for ourselves; we are doing it for Ghana’s democracy and the political parties. And the parties believe this is something good for our democracy,” the Deputy Commissioner of the Electoral Commission said on Joy FM.
Background
The Seventh-Day Adventist Church had earlier requested for this year’s election date to be changed.
In a petition to the Electoral Commission and the Attorney General, the church stated that the date, which falls on a Saturday, conflicts with the Sabbath—a holy day they’ve dedicated to the worship of God.
The church is proposing the adoption of “the first (1st) or second (2nd) Tuesday of November” as the new date for Ghana’s general elections, which it said needs to be codified to guarantee Adventists the freedom to worship.
