President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, criticized the Electoral Commission (EC) for attributing the recent shortcomings in the District Assembly election to "technical challenges."

In his scathing assessment, Cudjoe argues that the EC's explanation not only lacks sincerity but also reveals deeper-seated issues pertaining to the Commission's overall planning and transparency.

Mr Cudjoe brings attention to a noticeable contradiction within the EC's narrative.

Despite their earlier assurances of preparedness weeks before the election, the Commission now cites last-minute technical difficulties as the cause of the disruptions.

“This whole conversation about technical issues for the lapse the EC had cannot be true. You see if they are saying that maybe someone’s name was misspelled or something on the ballot, maybe yes. You can’t tell me that 12 hours or 6 hours to the elections, you didn’t know that you didn’t have all the accoutrement.

“These are not technical issues, they are just blatant disregard for the processes, it should have been ready two weeks earlier”.

This incongruity, according to Cudjoe, suggests a fundamental flaw in the Commission's ability to anticipate and address logistical challenges in a timely manner.

The seasoned analyst dismisses the notion that the encountered issues were purely technical, asserting that the revelation of insufficient resources hours before the election demonstrates a blatant disregard for established electoral processes.

Mr Cudjoe contends that such essential components should have been adequately prepared at least two weeks in advance.

Furthermore, he took the EC to task for what he perceives as a "headstrong" approach and a lack of collaboration with stakeholders.

According to him, the exclusion of voices from diverse political parties contributes to avoidable problems, as evident in the recent election disruptions.

“The EC has been very headstrong…If they had internalized some of these issues, I don’t know why they would then wake up and tell us recently that in the main 2024 polls, they will close polls at 3 pm. What kind of signs went into that type of decision?

“Well, if you are going to have an election and this District level election is an example of some of the processes that were bungled, would you think that 3 pm should applied to every polling station? Would you want to do something like that”? he added.