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Government
has met in full EC’s budget - Kufuor
Accra, May 1, Ghanadot/GNA – The request for funds for the
December 2008 polls submitted by the Electoral Commission
(EC) to the Government has been met in full, President John
Agyekum Kufuor, said in Accra on Thursday.
He said this notwithstanding, the Government stood ready to
meet any subsequent legitimate demand the Commission would
make.
President Kufuor, who was addressing the National May Day
Parade, the last of his Presidency, at the Independence
Square in Accra, therefore urged the EC to do its work with
the professionalism required of it.
Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama, Prof. John Evans Atta
Mills and Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, presidential candidates of the
National Democratic Congress and Convention People’s Party
respectively, and captains of industry joined the workers at
the parade held under the theme: “Deepening Ghana’s
Democracy; The Role of Organized Labour.”
He pointed out that the responsibility for running credible
elections went beyond the Commission to embrace all
Ghanaians.
It was on account of this that, “we should be able to desist
from pronouncements, which give rise to undue scepticism and
work together with the Commission to ensure transparency,
fairness and peace”.
President Kufuor cautioned that any misunderstanding arising
from the Presidential and Parliamentary polls should be
subjected to due processes of the law.
He repeated his pledge that the Government would not do
anything that would undermine the upcoming elections.
“Ghana is considered a beacon of democracy. Therefore, we
should all be committed through our conduct to validate this
positive assessment.”
He asked the political parties to see themselves as part of
the constitutional organs running for elections, and for
that matter, behave in the letter and spirit of the
Constitution to assist the process and to be law abiding.
President Kufuor reminded them that anything short of that
would be illegal and detrimental to the nation’s progress.
Mr Kofi Asamoah, Acting Secretary General of the Trades
Union Congress (TUC), asked the parties to note that what
the nation was demanding from them was responsible
campaigning for votes and level-headedness.
“It is important that the parties do not mislead citizens
and create a siege mentality among their members and
followers by any suggestion that, the December elections are
a matter of life and death. They are not.”
Organized labour, he said, would accept nothing other than
free, fair and transparent elections as the nation moved
forward in consolidating democracy.
He said Ghanaian workers were committed to resolutely defend
and uphold the democratic foundations on which the future of
the nation was built.
GNA
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