Dr Valerie Esther Sawyerr is the Presidential Advisor for Governmental Affairs
Presidential Advisor for Governmental Affairs, Dr Valerie Esther Sawyerr, is calling on the Electoral Commission Chairperson, Jean Mensa, to order a rerun of elections at 62 polling stations in the Ablekuma North Constituency, citing concerns over irregularities in the collation process.
According to a report by citinewsroom.com, Dr Sawyerr made this demand in a strongly-worded public statement released on Wednesday, June 11.
The statement, titled “The Saga of the Scanned Pink Sheets and Ablekuma North,” described what she called a “diabolic drama” involving the Electoral Commission’s alleged reliance on scanned pink sheets submitted by the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the absence of original carbonated forms.
“No ground stomping, no walks from Timbuktu to Accra… will make what is wrong… right,” Dr Sawyerr wrote, stressing that the only fair solution is to “order a rerun at the sixty-two (62) polling stations… and stop wasting our time.”
The controversy stems from violent incidents during the December 7, 2024, general elections, which reportedly led to the destruction of original carbonated pink sheets at the Ablekuma North collation centre.
Dr Sawyerr explained that while results from 219 of the 281 polling stations were properly collated, the remaining 62 were left without validated forms.
She criticised what she described as a shift in the Electoral Commission’s stance.
EC Director of Elections, Dr Benjamin Bannor Bio, had reportedly rejected the use of scanned pink sheets.
However, this decision was later overruled by Dr Sereboe Quaicoe, the EC’s Director of Training — a move Dr Sawyerr questioned.
“On what authority does a Director for Training overturn the decision of a Director of Elections at this stage of the electioneering process?” she asked.
According to the report, the Electoral Commission subsequently accepted 42 scanned pink sheets submitted by the NPP.
Despite opposition from the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the EC brought in 17 presiding officers to validate the scanned data.
Dr Sawyerr noted, however, that some of these officials were unable to verify the accuracy of the forms.
In her statement, Dr Sawyerr called for fairness and adherence to democratic principles, emphasising that peace in Ablekuma North hinges on restoring credibility to the process.
“The voice of the people must be heard… Let us all tell the EC that enough is enough. The scales of Lady Justice must stand balanced even as her blindfold signifies the absence of bias,” she urged.
She also rejected claims by the Electoral Commission that both political parties had agreed to accept the scanned pink sheets, describing the assertion as a “bold-faced lie.”
Dr Sawyerr ended her statement with a firm appeal for calm and accountability: “I am for peace… Shalom.”
AS/AE
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