THE Eastern Regional Office of the Electoral Commission (EC), together with representatives of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP), as well as police personnel have conveyed all the 114 ballot boxes for the just-ended parliamentary elections in the Asuogyaman District of the Eastern Region from the Akosombo Police Station to the EC’s office in Koforidua.
This followed an order by a Koforidua High Court on January 23, this year that the ballot papers should be sent to the EC’s office in Koforidua for security reasons.
The court, presided over by Justice Owusu Kwarteng, was trying the case in which Kofi Osei Ameyaw, the NPP parliamentary candidate for the Asuogyaman Constituency in the elections had filed a writ, praying the court to declare the election of Mr Asare Okoto, the NDC candidate, null and void.
In the suit, Mr Ameyaw also prayed the court to do a recount of all the ballot papers in respect of the elections in the constituency and declare him (Osei Ameyaw) as the duly elected MP for the constituency.
The court gave the order after a Koforidua barrister, Mr Francis Polly, counsel for Osei Ameyaw, had asked the court to order the removal of the ballot boxes from the EC’s office in the constituency, which he said was a wooden structure, since there was the possibility of the place to be burnt down as happened to the EC’s office in the Tain Constituency.
Counsel also stated that there was the possibility of the EC officials tampering with the ballot boxes if they remained in the EC’s office at Asuogyaman.
Justice Kwarteng, after listening to Mr Polly’s argument, ordered the removal of the boxes, which he said should be done by the EC, the police and the parties involved.
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