The Electoral Commission (EC) says it is set to receive nomination forms from presidential aspirants at its headquarters in Accra tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday, September 29 and 30, 2016.
The Director of Elections of the EC, Mr Samuel Tettey, told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the commission had put measures in place at its Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Department to authenticate the forms.
For instance, he said, the EC had a system to verify the voter identification numbers of registered voters who were required to endorse the nominations forms.
Under the law, two registered voters from each of the districts across the country are supposed to endorse the forms of each of the presidential aspirants.
According to Mr Tettey, as of last Friday, 25 people had picked presidential nomination forms to become presidential candidates for political parties or independent candidates.
The political parties which have picked nomination forms for their presidential aspirants so far are the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), the National Democratic Party (NDP), the United Development System Party (UDSP), the People’s National Convention (PNC) and the United Love Party (ULP).
Others are the Independent People’s Party (IPP), the United Progressive Party (UPP), the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), the United Front Party (UFP), the Democratic People’s Party (DPP), the All People’s Congress (APC), the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) and the Reform Patriotic Democrats (RPD).
The independent candidates are Mr Jacob Osei-Yeboah, Mr Kwaku Antwi Owusu, Mr Lawrence Yamil Nketia, Mr Kwame Asiedu Walker, Chief Dr Yaw Kumi, John Alex Hamah and Major Ibrahim Rida (retd).
Two additional independent candidates picked the forms but Mr Tettey could not readily give their names.
Mr Tettey indicated that the EC would not review downward the GH¢50,000 nomination fee for presidential aspirants, as requested by some political parties.
Other requirements
The presidential aspirants are required to provide their own particulars and the particulars of their running mates.
Besides, they are obliged to present their pictures and tax clearance certificates.
Each of them is required to provide a statutory declaration signed by a judge, a commissioner of oaths or any notary officer.
The presidential aspirants or their representatives can present the nomination forms.
Mr Tettey said the Chairperson of the EC, Mrs Charlotte Osei, who is the Returning Officer, was expected to receive the forms, but indicated that she could delegate someone to do so.
He said once the commission cleared a presidential aspirant, he or she became a presidential candidate.
The EC Director of Elections said the filing of nominations was not a fanfare for supporters to besiege the EC headquarters.
He said the EC and the security agencies had put in place security measures to ensure that only those who had business with the nomination forms would enter the premises of the commission.
Mr Tettey urged political parties which had disagreements with some of their executive members to specify the officers who would present the forms on behalf of the respective parties.
That, he said, was to prevent any unwarranted people from coming to interfere with the process.
“We do not want any imposter to come around,” he said.
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