Nana Akomea, a leading member of the New Patriotic Party
Nana Akomea, the Vice Chairman of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s campaign team, has condemned the distribution of food to voters during the Special Voting exercise by persons affiliated with the Member of Parliament for the Ayawaso West Wuogon Constituency, Lydia Seyram Alhassan.
Commenting on the issue on Peace FM, Nana Akomea stated that the conduct of Lydia Alhassan and her team is a slap in the face of the law.
He stated that the law proscribes such conduct and also frowns upon people wearing party shirts and paraphernalia on election day.
Nana Akomea was also surprised by the conduct of the voters, noting that for persons with knowledge about elections and electoral laws, they should have shown some level of maturity and awareness by rejecting the food.
“All the parties are distributing items, but to do that in a voting queue and in the full glare of the public is difficult. The person who did that did not behave properly. Giving items to people on election day is not allowed. You are not even allowed to wear party shirts or paraphernalia on voting day, let alone share things with voters. That place is supposed to be a security area.
“What shocks me is that these are not ordinary voters; they are Special Voters. Why would security officials accept food while queueing up to vote? These are people who will play roles in the elections, so if, on the day of voting, someone distributes food, will they be able to stop them? It is disturbing,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lydia Alhassan maintains that she engaged in no such act, insisting that she only picked water from the bag to drink.
Despite her denial, John Dumelo, her rival for the Ayawaso West Wuogon seat, has filed a complaint at the Office of the Special Prosecutor, demanding an investigation into her conduct.
According to Dumelo, Lydia Alhassan’s conduct breached the country’s criminal and electoral laws.
“This afternoon at about 1:00 pm (Tuesday, December 3), my team filed a formal criminal complaint against Ms Lydia Seyram Alhassan (the sitting MP for our beloved Ayawaso West Wuogon constituency) at the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP). The complaint entails video recordings of various conducts by Ms. Lydia Seyram Alhassan, which we believe breach our criminal and electoral laws,” his post said.
Dumelo clarified that the complaint was lodged to prevent such actions and illegal conduct during the general elections on December 7, 2024.
He is thus urging the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to take strong action on the matter, emphasizing that the OSP’s response will influence the credibility of the upcoming elections.
“We expect the OSP to take immediate and decisive steps to not only prevent Ms. Lydia Seyram Alhassan from repeating the unlawful behaviour, but also to bring her and all her accomplices to book. It goes without saying that how the OSP handles our complaint between today and Friday, December 6, will determine the quality of Saturday’s elections.”
EK
