Josiah
Residents of the Guan area in the Oti Region are expressing apprehension over the limited timeframe provided for acquiring nomination forms for the upcoming District Assembly election. They contend that the brief period between the nomination announcement and the deadline is insufficient for proper preparation.
On November 8, 2023, the Electoral Commission (EC) declared the commencement of nominations for the District Assembly elections set for December 19, 2023. Initially, the Guan district was excluded from the nomination process as the constituency had not been officially established. The EC had assured the residents of Guan that they would be informed about the nomination date for their district.
Finally, on December 4, 2023, the EC opened nominations for the Guan Constituency with a deadline set for December 8, 2023. This abrupt notice has raised significant concerns among residents and potential candidates.
Fred Agbenyo, a parliamentary aspirant from the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Guan Constituency, voiced his concerns, urging the EC to reconsider the deadline. He highlighted the challenges posed by the current farming season, stating, “You know this is a farming season, and this is a farming area. Everybody wakes up to go to the farm in the morning, so until somebody tells them that they’ve opened the nomination, they are unaware.”
Agbenyo emphasized the urgency of extending the election date to at least the 28th of the month, allowing people to adequately prepare. He also stressed the importance of the EC actively informing the public about the newly created constituency, suggesting, “We are also appealing to the Electoral Commission, since the C. I 119 that was laid out matured, they should put up a public notice that the Guan constituency has been created to allay the fear and all the things the people are going through.”
Source:Omanghana.com
