EC must command public confidence regardless of which party is in power – Victoria Bright

Private legal practitioner Victoria Bright has called for consistency in the appointment of Electoral Commission (EC) officials, stressing that the Commission must command public confidence regardless of which political party is in power.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, October 17, she said the appointment of the two new Deputy Chairpersons of the EC must be assessed against consistent standards of constitutional legality, professional suitability and public confidence in their independence.

“I think we must approach this issue with a consistent principle. And that principle is that the Electoral Commission must command public confidence, regardless of which party is in government,” she said.

Ms Bright cautioned against changing the standards applied to appointments whenever political power changes hands, arguing that the credibility of the electoral body depends not only on the legality of its appointments but also on whether Ghanaians have confidence in its impartiality.

She identified three key questions that should guide the assessment of the appointments: whether the constitutional requirements had been met, whether the appointees were suitable for their respective positions, and whether the process provided citizens with reasonable grounds to trust their independence.

According to her, these questions are related but must be considered separately.

She noted that the 1992 Constitution empowers the President to appoint Electoral Commissioners on the advice of the Council of State, while also protecting the Commission from external direction or control in the performance of its functions.

Although she acknowledged that the appointments were not unconstitutional, she said concerns remained about their implications for public confidence in the institution.

“The appointments are not unconstitutional, but they do cause concern,” she said.

Ms Bright argued that, for an institution as sensitive as the EC, the perception of independence was almost as important as independence itself.

She said the central issue was not simply whether the appointments were lawful, but whether they inspired confidence in the neutrality of the Commission across the political divide.

Addressing the appointment of Emelia Afi Agbenyo, Ms Bright said concerns about her perceived political affiliations were relevant to the wider discussion about public confidence in the EC.

She argued that her reported close association with the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) provided a basis for citizens to question how the appointing authorities had considered the potential implications for perceptions of impartiality.

However, Ms Bright stressed that Agbenyo’s qualifications and professional experience deserved fair consideration, adding that competence alone did not automatically resolve questions about independence.

“For me, her qualifications and professional experience do deserve fair consideration. But both competence and independence are necessary for this kind of appointment. And evidence of one does not automatically answer questions about the other,” she said.

On the appointment of Dr Joseph Kweku Asamoah, she acknowledged that his previous experience within the EC was relevant to his new role.

NPP and NDC challenged to maintain consistency

Ms Bright also recalled the controversy surrounding appointments to the EC under former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, including the appointment of Chairperson Jean Mensa, who is allegedly related to the former First Lady, Rebecca Akufo-Addo.

She said those appointments attracted objections from civil society organisations, including the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), as well as criticism from the NDC, which was then in opposition.

In her view, the history of those disagreements meant that both the NPP and the NDC had questions of consistency to answer over their positions on appointments to the electoral body.

For the NPP, she said the question was why concerns about partisan associations should carry decisive weight under the current administration when similar concerns were resisted while the party was in government.

For the NDC, she questioned how its own appointments measured up to the standards it had demanded when it was in opposition.

Ms Bright maintained that political parties should uphold the principles they advocated while in opposition once they assumed office.

She cautioned that controversial appointments made by previous administrations should not become a justification for repeating similar controversies.

“Earlier controversial appointments cannot become a standing justification for further controversial appointments. We can’t keep going on and on,” she said.

Bright questions argument about balancing EC composition

The private legal practitioner also expressed concern about the reported explanation from the government side that the appointments were intended to rebalance the composition of the EC.

She said such an argument would be troubling if the balance being discussed referred to partisan representation within the Commission.

According to her, the EC should not be viewed as a body made up of representatives of competing political interests whose appointments are intended to counterbalance one another.

Ms Bright warned that such an approach could undermine the Commission’s role as an impartial arbiter of the electoral process.

She maintained that the priority should be to protect the independence and credibility of the institution rather than to create a perception that its composition reflects a political contest between the governing party and the opposition.

Her comments come after President John Dramani Mahama swore in Dr Asamoah and Ms Agbenyo as Deputy Chairpersons of the EC on October 16.