The Majority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, has said the Electoral Commission (EC) has called for the withdrawal of the Constitutional Instrument (CI) on the creation of the Guan Constituency.
He said the commission referred to a lack of sufficient time to meet a constitutionally mandated 21-day period before Parliament went into recess.
Parliament is expected to rise on Friday, December 22, 2023.
Reasons
Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, also the Leader of Government Business in Parliament, during a Leaders’ Media Briefing in Parliament last Wednesday, explained that the EC’s withdrawal request was due to the impending district-level election and the need to align the constituency creation with the election process.
“They submitted a request to withdraw it and the very day of reconvening, they had submitted it for presentation and concurrently, they had submitted another one for its withdrawal,” he said.
“The reason for the withdrawal was simple.
It was that if you created a constituency, you then need to hold the District Level Elections (DLE) to conform to the creation of the constituency.
However, there was not going to be any constituency at that time,” the Majority Leader told the Parliamentary Press Corps.
The constituency, which is made up of the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi (SALL) traditional areas, was intended to allow residents to participate in the 2024 parliamentary elections.
However, the EC had specified that the necessary procedures could not be completed within the required period.
Opposition
Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the Minority Leader, however, opposed the EC’s decision, asserting that the district-level election for the Guan Constituency could be held after the election of assembly members for other constituencies.
Therefore, the EC did not have the right grounds for withdrawing the C.I., he said.
The Leaders’ engagement is held at the beginning of every meeting under the auspices of the Media Relations Department of Parliament.
This is to ensure an open interaction primarily within the scope of the work agenda of that meeting among the leaders and the Parliamentary press corps.
EC
Meanwhile the EC has announced the opening of nominations for the District Level Elections (DLEs) which takes place on November 16 and 17, 2023, between the hours of 9 a.m. to 12 noon and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on each day.
Nomination forms could be obtained free of charge at the district offices of the EC across the country or from its website: “www.ec.gov.gh.”
The process is part of preparations towards DLEs, which would be held on December 19 to elect Assembly and Unit Committee members.
However, the EC would not receive nominations in the Jasikan and Guan Districts on November 16 and 17 as announced for the other districts in the country where the term of office of the Assembly and Unit Committee Members expires on December 17, 2023.
This is because the C.I. 119 (to be amended) which has been laid in Parliament will not mature before the date announced for the receipt of nominations.
Source: gna.org.gh
