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Tag: Dr Afari Gyan

  • The most pragmatic EC Chair Ghana has had is Afari Gyan – Franklin Cudjoe

    The most pragmatic EC Chair Ghana has had is Afari Gyan – Franklin Cudjoe

    The President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, has lauded the Former Chairman of the Electoral Commission (EC), Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan, as the most practical Electoral Commissioner Ghana has ever known.

    In an interview with Selorm Adonoo on The Big Issue on Citi TV, Mr. Cudjoe commended Mr. Gyan’s pragmatic approach to overseeing the country’s electoral procedures.

    Mr. Cudjoe credited the successful organization of numerous elections during Afari Gyan’s tenure to his adept handling of Ghana’s intricate political landscape, a contrast to the current situation under the leadership of Commissioner Jean Mensa.

    While acknowledging that Mr. Gyan faced his own set of challenges, Mr. Cudjoe emphasized his pragmatism.

    “…By far he’s [Afari Gyan] been the most pragmatic of all the ECs [Chairs] that we have had.”

    He further indicated that “…I am so pained that just pragmatic simple stuff that she [Jean Mensa] could have pumped some sense into the other commissioners and then get a befitting EC whose public confidence would have been probably 70 or 80 by now. She failed abysmally.”

  • Stop recruiting nonentities as polling agents – Afari-Gyan to political parties

    Stop recruiting nonentities as polling agents – Afari-Gyan to political parties

    Former commissioner of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan has cautioned political parties to refrain from recruiting “nonentities” as polling agents.

    According to him, it is important for political parties to rely on competent persons as polling agents rather than those who can foment violence.

    “Fortunately, in some elections I have seen some big people serving as agents. Don’t go and recruit nonentities to go and do the work at the polling stations, it is brainwork,” Mr. Gyan is quoted in a report by Dailyguidenetwork.com.

    The former EC boss who was speaking at a lecture organized by the Rotary Club of Accra West on Wednesday, February 8, further educated the gathering about the significance of pink sheets.

    He noted that “refusing to sign the pink sheet, as we call it in Ghana, does not automatically invalidate the election results.”

    “Some candidates believe that if the agents don’t sign it means the results are invalid. Sometimes we are told that the candidates even tell the party ‘if I lose very badly don’t sign it’, thinking that it will be invalidated. No, refusing to sign the pink sheet does not automatically invalidate the election results.

    “What does the law say? The law says if you are refusing to sign you must give reasons in writing at the polling station why you do not sign it and then the electoral commission will later look into the reason that you have given. If you have not written any such thing then ignore it.

    “So it is important to remember that being an agent at the polling station is brainwork, it is not a brawl, it is not a fight, you are not going to fight at the polling station, it is brainwork, the person must understand what is going on so that he can raise these things.

    “I have said many times that given the importance of pink sheets, I think nobody is too big to serve his or her party as an agent on election day,” he added.

    Dr Afari-Gyan, up until his retirement in 20015 supervised all of Ghana’s elections held under the 1992 Constitution and Fourth Republican dispensation.

    Source: Ghanaweb