- Afari-Gyan criticizes cancelling valid ballots.
- He advocates for reruns in contested areas.
- Discarding valid ballots undermines democracy.
- People's decision should prevail, not officials'.
Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, former Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), has expressed strong disapproval of the practice of canceling validly cast ballots in disputed areas.
Instead, he advocates for rerunning elections in contested areas to ensure an accurate reflection of the people’s will.
According to Dr. Afari-Gyan, discarding valid ballots undermines the democratic process and is unacceptable.
He emphasized this point while speaking on the sidelines of the Ghana Bar Association’s Annual General Conference in Kumasi.
Dr. Afari-Gyan reiterated that validly cast ballots should not be set aside in such cases, stressing the importance of upholding the democratic process.
He highlighted the implications of canceling valid ballots, noting that it can lead to punishing innocent people who have committed no offense.
Dr. Afari-Gyan referenced the “doctrine of wasted votes” in Nigeria, where many ballots are discarded, emphasizing that this approach is incorrect.
He emphasized that the right course of action is to rerun the election, allowing the people to decide the outcome.
Dr. Afari-Gyan stressed that the decision should be made by the people, not election officials or judges.
Ultimately, Dr. Afari-Gyan’s stance underscores the importance of protecting the integrity of the democratic process and ensuring that the will of the people is respected.
