In so doing, the party has given an assurance that it will not shy away from any action that will ensure its success.

The Leader and Founder of the PPP, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, stated this at a press conference in Accra last Tuesday.

The press conference was to mark the first anniversary of the disqualification of the party’s presidential candidate in the 2016 election.

Background

The EC, in 2016, disqualified 13 out of the 17 presidential hopefuls who filed to run for the election.

Among the disqualified candidates were two-time aspirant and businessman Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, and former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings.

The PPP took the matter to the Supreme Court and the court asked the EC to allow the party’s presidential candidate to contest the election.

The EC Chairperson, Mrs Charlotte Osei, had announced at a news conference that those who were disqualified failed to meet the necessary requirements in filing their nomination forms.

Different reasons were given for the disqualification of each aspirant, including incomplete details on forms, failure to meet legal requirements during filing process and failure to pay the required fee within the stipulated time (not later than 12 noon on Monday, October 10, 2016).

Others were disqualified because they were fraudulently endorsed by unqualified subscribers and the EC said it would “refer the matter of the possible forgeries to the Ghana Police Service and the Attorney-General for investigation and prosecution.”

President John Dramani Mahama qualified to run for the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC); the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP’s) candidate Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the Convention People’s Party (CPP) candidate, Ivor Kobina Greenstreet, and an independent presidential candidate, Jacob Osei Yeboah, also qualified to run.

Singular action

Recounting the events that led to his disqualification, Dr Nduom said the “singular action by the EC in 2016 went contrary to all the values Ghana has stood for as a nation since independence, freedom and justice, and it threatened to damage our young democracy and the admiration of the world as a beacon of hope in Africa.’’

Dr Nduom said the PPP recalled with much pain how exactly one year ago, on October 10, 2016, the EC held a press conference to disqualify, on spurious grounds, 12 out of the total 17 aspirants who had submitted their nomination forms in good faith to be considered as presidential candidates for the 2016 election. Only four presidential aspirants were then deemed as qualified to contest Election 2016, while the fifth candidate was granted a few days to sort out his pending court case.

According to Dr Nduom, members of the PPP were shocked, traumatised and dumbfounded at this political charade because, glaringly, the EC boss had not followed, in accordance with the dictates of CI94, the procedures for nomination.

Effect of disqualification

Dr Nduom recalled that while the PPP was battling its disqualification case at the law courts, the other favoured political parties were busily campaigning and canvassing for votes.

‘’Many of our party members lost respect in their constituencies as a result of the criminal attachment to the case. This also led to emotional exhaustion, low levels of morale; creating absenteeism, lack of motivation and interest in the election battle for the people’s hearts and minds. Party members were thoroughly demoralised as a result of the EC’s wrongful accusations!’’

The PPP, he said, could not forget the amount of money that was spent on legal fees; money that could very usefully have been employed to support some of their targeted constituencies.

Dr Nduom continued that as a law-abiding party, “we sought audience with the EC to give opportunity to resolve any misunderstandings that might have informed their decision to disqualify the PPP’s presidential candidate.’’

Apparently, we were naïve enough to have underestimated the actions of the EC as a mere gloss over its own administrative procedures. As it turned out, little did we know that the EC Chairperson was involved in an orchestrated, diabolic and hideous scheme carefully crafted to scuttle the efforts of the PPP and its flag bearer,” he added.

Public knowledge

The PPP presidential candidate at the 2016 polls said it was now public knowledge that the objective of the EC and the Chairperson, Mrs Charlotte Osei, in particular, was to reduce the 2016 election to a two-horse race, making it easier to allow other illegal measures to be activated to subvert the will of the people in favour of one political party.

He said the party’s efforts to have this matter settled amicably failed. It proceeded to the High Court and that during the process, the PPP was introduced to another determined action on the part of the chairperson when she lied under oath that the PPP’s flag bearer had already been given fair hearing.

He said ‘’it took the watchful and eagle eyes of the legal team led by Hon. Ayikoi Otoo to draw the attention of Justice Kyei Baffour to the attempted subversion of justice. The ignominious lie was subsequently deleted from the ECs records.’’

He recalled that at the end of this long legal battle celebrated in the legal arena as ex parte Papa Kwesi Nduom, Justice Kyei Baffour delivered a remarkable human rights judgement that boosted the public’s confidence in the Judiciary and restoration of citizens’ rights. It was a huge defeat to abuse of office, the tyranny of Charlotte, a modern-day Judas, and the well-rehearsed plan to rig the 2016 election in favour of a particular political party.

Dr Nduom commended the Judicial Service for expeditiously upholding the law and the very many well-meaning Ghanaians who spoke up against the palpable injustice.

In this direction, Dr Nduom reminded all Ghanaians to “never again allow the EC to decide for the entire country what to do outside of the rule of law.”

The party further urged all Ghanaians to be vigilant, pray and resist oppressors rule in all its forms.