I don’t need COVID-19 to extend my tenure - Akufo-Addo
- President Akufo-Addo will not use the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to extend his first term of office
- The NPP government says it is committed to ensuring that there is a free and fair election to elect a leader beyond 2020
- There are fears Ghana may not be able to hold the 2020 elections due to the pandemic
- Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in
Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has assured Ghanaians that he has no intention to capitalize on the COVID-19 pandemic to extend his mandate as leader of the country.
Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah set the records straight at Tuesday, May 12, 2020, press conference on COVID-19 in Accra.
Mr. Nkrumah noted that President Akufo-Addo is not interested in a possible extension of his first term unconstitutionally.
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There has been uncertainty in the conduct of Ghana’s presidential and parliamentary elections in December 2020 following the suspension of all electoral activities in the wake of the outbreak.
While some are of the view that the Electoral Commission cannot compile a new register due to time constraints, others believe that resorting to some constitutional provisions is the way to go.
But the MP for Ofoase Ayirebi said that Ghana will find innovative ways to hold the elections in December like other countries like Ivory Coast and Burundi are considering.
He, therefore, called on all stakeholders and political parties to rally round and invest their energies in exploring and deploying a way to hold a peaceful and credible presidential and parliamentary elections.
“The government is of the view that instead of contemplating measures that are not envisaged in the constitution, our best energies, our innovation and creativity should be invested in exploring how a country like ours can have safe and free elections,” Mr. Oppong Nkrumah noted.
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Meanwhile, Ghana’s COVID-19 cases continue to rise. The Ghana Health Service announced an increase in coronavirus numbers from 4,700 to 5,127.
YEN.com.gh also earlier reported that the Electoral Commission (EC) has responded to allegations by the Minority on their intension to compile new voters' register ahead of the December 2020 polls in the midst of the Coronavirus crisis.
The Minority Leader at a press conference questioned the priorities of the government and the EC as the coronavirus festers.
A statement signed by the election management body’s Acting Director of Public Affairs, Mrs. Sylvia Annor, noted that the Commission will still go ahead with the compilation of the new register despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
