Jean Mensa has not been flown to Ghana; she is still in Nigeria – EC dismisses Dafeamekpor’s claim

The Electoral Commission (EC) has denied the claim by the South Dayi Member of Parliament, Rockson Nelson Daferamekpor, that the EC Chairman, Jean Mensa, was flown to Ghana from Nigeria to meet with Parliament on the proposed Constitutional Instrument (CI) that seeks to make the Ghana Card the sole form of identification for voter registration.

In a statement issued on Monday, 27 February, the Commission said, "On Wednesday, 22 February 2023, Parliament sent a letter to the EC requesting the Commission to meet with the leaders of Parliament on Thursday, 23 February 2024, to discuss the draft CI on voter registration.

"At the time, the chairperson had been invited by ECOWAS/ECONEC to go to Nigeria for a peer exchange and to observe elections. Nevertheless, Dr Bossman Asare, the deputy chairperson for corporate services, and other directors of the commission were present at the meeting.”

"It was a surprise that the meeting was cancelled because the minority side insisted that the EC chairperson should be there. We want to say that despite what the news report said, the Chairperson of the EC is still in Nigeria and not in Ghana. She hasn't returned to Ghana yet".

The EC also said, "The Commission, and especially its Chairperson, knows how important the Parliament is because she worked with it for 20 years before she became the Chairperson of the EC."

"The chairperson respects the institution of Parliament, so she won't do anything to harm or undermine it.

"It is still true that Parliament sent the invitation one day before the meeting, when the Chairperson was out of the country. If she had known about the request before she left, she would have put the meeting at the top of her list and gone to the honourable House."

Mr Dafeamekpor had said Madam Jean Mensa was flown to Ghana from Nigeria because the opposition lawmakers had turned down officials from the EC and the National Identification Agency (NIA) who were in Parliament to talk about the proposed CI.

He said the minority lawmakers were not prepared to accept the "disrespect" shown to Parliament by the EC Chair.

On Thursday, 23 February, opposition lawmakers strongly rebuffed people from the EC and the NIA.

“Yesterday, EC gave 1000 & 1 reasons why Jean Mensa couldn’t be in Parliament to answer questions on her inordinate desire for a new CI.

“The Minority stood its grounds: No Jean Mensa, No meeting. Guess what? She’s been flown in from Abuja. Her disrespect of Parliament has to end,” he tweeted.

The Minority has raised concerns about the proposed CI by the electoral body, which wants to use the Ghana Card as the only form of ID for voter registration ahead of the 2024 general elections.