Ghana has violated the ECOWAS protocol with the passage of Constitutional Instrument 126.
That is according to Peace Building and Conflict Mediation expert Emmanuel Bombande.
The Electoral Commission of Ghana with the tacit approval of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in parliament yesterday secured the approval of Parliament for the controversial CI.
The move, which was endorsed by all 106 NPP MPs present in parliament yesterday, means the CI has become operational from today.
However, Emmanuel Bombande who is a Senior Mediation Adviser at the Department of Political Affairs of the United Nations says the timing and manner of passage of the CI affront Section 2 of the ECOWAS Protocol signed by former President John Agyekum Kuffuor in 2001.
He was speaking in an interview with Sena Nombo on the Gold Power Drive.
According to him, Article 2(1) of Section 2 of the protocol explicitly abhors “substantial modifications” to the electoral laws of member countries 6 months to an election.
He said the CI signifies a substantial modification because of the potential to disenfranchise millions of Ghanaians who have no passports or Ghana cards.
Emmanuel Bombande said Section 2 of the ECOWAS Protocol allows room for such an act only if all major political stakeholders and players are on board and back the move.
UN Senior Advisor says his observations have rather shown that the CI has been widely rejected by key players in the political space including civil society groups, chiefs, religious leaders and former Heads of State.
He said the EC’s handling of the entire process flies in the face of the spirit of the ECOWAS protocol which was intended to prevent conflict by protecting the right of every citizen to partake in the democratic process and exercise the right to vote without hindrance.
Source: Gold Power Drive/Radiogoldlive.com
