Lawyer and Senior Vice President of IMANI Africa, Kofi Bentil, has called for the resignation of all three commissioners of the Electoral Commission (EC), citing what he described as a “catastrophic failure” in the commission’s duties.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, Mr Bentil said the EC had failed in a task that should have been simple with the resources and experience at its disposal.
“Here, we have a situation where we have what is called catastrophic failure. Catastrophic failure is when I give you every resource you need to do something for me, which is simple enough for you to be able to do with your competencies and the resources I have given you, and you fail totally. That’s what we’ve gotten,” he said.
He said the failure of the EC indicated either an inability or a refusal to do its job.
“When you have catastrophic failure, it is either an unwillingness to do the job or incompetence to do so,” Mr Bentil said. “And Asiedu Nketia said so, he said this EC is not fit for purpose. They are either unwilling to do the job or incompetent.”
Citing the EC’s handling of the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL) case in the Oti Region, he described the Commission’s conduct as a clear sign of institutional failure.
“For the first time in over 30 years of our democratic journey, the people of SALL went four years without parliamentary representation. Today, their seat remains empty,” he lamented, describing it as a glaring democratic setback.
He criticised the EC’s inconsistent statements during court proceedings on the Ablekuma case. “They initially testified under oath that there were three problems that required security intervention to resolve. If those were the facts presented under oath, why have they now changed their position?” he questioned.
Expressing deep frustration, he argued that the current constitutional protections shielding EC officials from dismissal are part of the problem. “If we were in a system where they could be dismissed more easily, they would have been sacked long ago. And failure to do so would be a clear dereliction of duty by whoever had that power.”
He echoed the call by NDC National Chairman, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, for the EC commissioners to resign. “I believe all three should step aside. If they refuse, I would support efforts to have them removed, perhaps for the first time in my political life.”
Comparing the current situation to the controversial removal of former EC Chairperson Charlotte Osei, he noted, “I disagreed with how Charlotte was removed and warned that it would set a dangerous precedent, where every new government removes EC heads. But in this case, I would welcome the removal of all three commissioners, and I have said this before.”
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