Collation of ballots in the Bawku Central Constituency has resumed after it was suspended on Friday, following demands by New Patriotic Party (NPP) collators to use the verification machines alongside copies certified by polling station agents. The NPP collators raised the issue immediately collation started and demanded to have results from the verification machine for crosschecking unconditionally to ensure that the two results tallied as they claimed there were growing suspicions of falsified results from some of the polls.
The NPP raised the issue at about midnight immediately collation started where about four polling station results were collated.
The Returning Officer, Mr Wilfred Amenyeku who could not convince the NPP collators sought to consult the Municipal Electoral Officer but there was no positive response and so collators and journalists including other observers had to sleep overnight without any results.
The Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Abdulai Musah who is a close ally of Mr Mohammed Ayariga contesting on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) told the Ghana News Agency that even though they might have right to such demand and any other demands, it was unhelpful in the dispensation of democracy.
He indicated that it was fair that the two parties had come to a compromise for collation to resume so that voters who stayed in long queues until midnight would continue to have trust in the electioneering process.
Mr Musah said he was collaborating with the security agencies and the Security Committee to put in place the necessary measures to ensure that whoever emerged winner would not over jubilate to incur the displeasure of the vanquished so that supporters of both candidates could contribute to the sustenance of peace in the area.
According to the Municipal Electoral Officer, Mr Kofi Asante Owusu, there were 17 polling stations in the constituency where voters cast their votes on Saturday.
The Bawku Central Constituency has 114 polling stations with 58,925 registered voters. Since 1993 it has been occupied by the two main political parties interchangeably. The seat was made vacant after the incumbent MP, Adamu Dramani was sentenced to two years in prison for perjury and impersonation early this year but there was no bi-election organized by the Electoral Commission in the constituency.
GNA
