Don't declare winners journalists implored
Journalists and media houses have been implored to stay away from the practice of announcing and declaring winners in elections ahead of the declaration by the Electoral Commission (EC).
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The Deputy Chairman in charge of Operation of the EC, Alhaji Amadu Sulley, gave the advice at a one-day capacity building training for journalists and media practitioners in Tamale in the Northern Region.
Held on the theme: “Enhancing inclusiveness in Ghana’s electoral process”, the training was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The training sensitised journalists to election reporting and highlights of the Constitutional Instrument (C.I) 91, which mandates the EC to register voters for public elections with modified guidelines.
The forum was also aimed at deepening the EC’s interaction with media practitioners on the thematic areas to promote overall effective reporting of electoral matters.
Declarations
Alhaji Sulley said declaring and announcing winners in elections before the EC should do it was a recipe for violence, adding that such practice could jeopardise the country’s peace.
He explained that it had become a common practice during elections for many journalists and media houses to take over the work of the EC and announce and declare winners.
That, Alhaji Sulley noted, ought to be stopped in order to ensure a peaceful election as the country prepared for its 2016 general election.
He observed that many journalists and media houses, in their haste to announce and declare winners, always do not wait for the certified results from the EC before making figures public.
Parties
Touching on this year’s elections, Alhaji Sulley said the country currently had 25 registered political parties to contest in this year’s presidential and parliamentary elections.
He said according to the country’s political laws, there was no limitation as to the number of political parties to be registered.
He,therefore, indicated that the EC would continue to register political parties so far as they met the provisions in the country’s Political Parties Law, 2000 (Act 574).
ID cards
Alhaji Sulley also defended the EC’s position to sell accreditation cards to journalists who covered this year’s district level elections.
According to him, when ID cards were given for free, journalists would not value them, hence the commission’s decision to place a price on it.
He, however, said the commission would give the situation a second look before the November polls.
The Northern Regional Director of the EC, Mr Bruce Ayisi, in his remarks, urged the journalists to be accurate and fair in their reporting of this year’s elections.
