The founder of the All People’s Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga has backed allegations made by the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC that the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has put in place machinations to ensure no force rises against it in the upcoming 2024 general elections.

Mr Ayariga was speaking on the Class Morning Show, on Thursday, 28 September 2023.

Backing the claims by the opposition NDC that the current government has the EC, security services and the courts on its side ahead of the 2024 polls, Mr Ayariga noted: “I think that there’s some iota of truth in it.”

Alluding reasons for backing the claim by the NDC, Mr Ayariga explained that: “Because when the smaller political parties decided to go to court and we got the injunction application against the Electoral Commission, [from carrying out the limited voter registration exercise] you saw what happened, it was thrown to the dustbin. So clearly what it means is that the Chief Justice did not want to listen to such an application, so if the NDC is saying that, of course there’s iota of truth in this, you cannot just debunk it because they themselves have done it in the past.”

The APC leader, therefore, proposed that the Constitution be amended to ensure that no government is vested with the power to select an Electoral Commissioner.

“So they[NDC] know what they’re talking that any anytime they are all in power they keep changing the Electoral Commission to their own and why would you keep changing an Electoral Commissioner every time your party was in power and so I would even say that the Electoral Commissioner should not be elected by the President of the day, we should have a constitution that makes them independent. None of their commissioners should be elected by the president or appointed by the president,” Mr Ayariga proposed.

Mr Ayariga stressed: “Those allegations the NDC has put out there there’s some iota of truth in it.”

Highlighting the negative import of Presidents having to appoint Electoral Commissioners, Mr Ayariga revealed that in the Dome Kwabenya Constituency, where he resides, despite having his driver and other friends vote for him, he was reported to have had no single vote as the EC recorded no votes for him.  

“He stood there, he voted for me, but when they counted them I didn’t get one single vote, but he voted, his wife voted, friends of mine within the community voted, but I got zero. My agent was there, they counted the votes and I was given the number, when they were recording I got zero.

 “I got 422 votes in Suame, my Parliamentary candidate got 600 votes, when they were writing they wrote 200 for my parliamentary candidate and they gave me 22 votes and when they contested they asked him that what is Ayariga going to do with 400 votes and the Electoral Commissioner was there,” Mr Ayariga intimated.