Whittal debunks NDC affiliations
A Deputy Commissioner of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Mr Joseph Whittal, has debunked allegations that he is affiliated to the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) party and therefore must be withdrawn from the 18-member National Electoral Steering Committee (NESC) of the Electoral Commission (EC).
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In an interview with the Daily Graphic, Mr Whittall, who was nominated by his institution, the CHRAJ, to serve on the NESC, said, “The people of Ghana must understand the logic behind the NESC. It is an advisory body, based on the collective experiences of the governance institutions for successful, free and fair elections,” Mr Whittall emphasised.
Conceding that every Ghanaian had a vote and a right to exercise it, Mr Whittal was emphatic that he was neither affiliated with the party nor was he a card-bearing member.
“Also, since my appointment in July 2012 as deputy commissioner of CHRAJ, I have striven to be balanced and not to be partisan in any way,” he said.
He described the NESC as one of the most innovative collaborative efforts with governance institutions in the country initiated by the electoral body.
He emphasised that the committee was merely advisory to facilitate and ensure the successful elections that all Ghanaians hoped for.
NDC activist
Mr Whittal is among some three members of an 18-member EC election steering committee being asked to step down from the committee because of their alleged close association with the ruling party, the NDC.
The other two members are Mr Francis Azumiah of the National Peace Council and Dr Karl Marx Arhin of the National Service Secretariat.
The accusations levelled against them are that Mr Whittal is a known member of the NDC and former parliamentary candidate for the party in the Builsa North constituency in the 2000 election.
In the case of Francis Azumiah, he is being accused of being a senior member of the NDC in the Builsa North constituency, who at various times tried to contest as parliamentary candidate for the party.
Dr Karl Mark Arhin, who has already been withdrawn from the committee is a card-bearing member of the NDC. Indeed, he was, until recently, a former Deputy Director of International Affairs of the NDC.
Members nominated not hand-picked
But in an explanation, Mr Whittall said the governance institutions such as the CHRAJ, the police service etc. were written to by the EC to nominate someone to serve on the committee.
In the case of the CHRAJ, a director was nominated; however, the EC by a letter indicated to CHRAJ that the committee would be discussing issues that could require policy interventions in the selected governance institutions, he added.
Thus, as one of the two deputy commissioners, with the other acting as the commissioner of CHRAJ, he was nominated to serve on the committee, Mr Whittall said.
He pointed out that even with his nomination, he did not nominate himself, but the nomination was done by the acting Commissioner, that is Mr Richard Quayson.
Laudable idea
Mr Whittall said it was, therefore, wrong for Ghanaians to malign such a laudable idea by the commissioners of the EC.
He said the collaboration with governance institutions would ensure efficiency with the electoral budgets of all governance institutions, as activities and initiatives would not be duplicated.
He mentioned, for instance, that for this year’s elections CHRAJ, with the help of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), would be monitoring the right of Ghanaians to vote.
Serving on the committee would mean that other institutions with similar programmes could partner with CHRAJ or vice versa in order not to duplicate efforts.
Collaboration
He said governance institutions had collaborated on several efforts in the past, with the CHRAJ currently collaborating with the EC and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) to develop client service charters.
CHRAJ was also collaborating with the Presidency on the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP).
Mr Whittal noted that all the collaborative initiatives were for the best governance outcomes and did not mean that governance institutions were short-changing Ghanaians.
“My responsibility is to the state, so if a state organisation invites my input and that of the institution because of the expertise of CHRAJ in elections monitoring, how can I refuse?” he queried critics.
Mr Whittal maintained that all the governance institutions with their diverse experiences in different fields would facilitate the 2016 elections for successful outcomes and asked Ghanaians to believe and have confidence in their institutions.
