Ghana’s Electoral Commission (EC) has clarified its role in electoral processes, emphasizing that while it ensures transparency, it is not responsible for security during elections.
EC Chairperson Jean Mensa, briefing Parliament on preparations for the December polls, underscored that maintaining peace and security falls solely under the police’s mandate.
“It is important to note that whilst we engage under the platform of the election security task force at all levels—National, regional, and district—the electoral commission is not responsible for security,” Mensa stated. She highlighted that the police independently handle security decisions before, during, and after elections.
Mensa outlined the EC’s collaboration with security agencies to safeguard election centres and ballot transportation. “What we do is to collaborate with them and to provide them with details of all our centres, provide them with details of printing arrangements to enable them to work with us and protect the ballot, especially when transporting these ballots to the regions,” she explained.
She further assured transparency across all electoral processes. “From the registration to the declaration, our processes are embedded with one key ingredient. And that is transparency, transparency, transparency,” Mensa affirmed. She reiterated the EC’s commitment to operating with fairness and integrity as outlined in its motto.
The EC’s clarification comes amidst ongoing preparations for the upcoming elections, highlighting the division of responsibilities between electoral oversight and security enforcement in Ghana’s democratic framework.
