Leader of the United Progressive Party(UPP) Akwasi Addai ‘Odike’ has accused the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and President Nana Akufo-Addo of orchestrating his disqualification from the presidential race.
Speaking on Joy FM’s News Night programme Monday, October 19, 2020, Mr Akwasi Odike Addai said that the NPP and the President have masterminded his disqualification by the Electoral Commission(EC) because of the threat he poses to the governing party.
Mr Odike has been disqualified along with four other aspirants. Kofi Koranteng and Marricke Kofi Gane, who are independent candidates, have been disqualified while two other aspirants apart from Mr Odike who are sponsored by parties – Kwasi Busumbru of the People’s Action Party (PAP) and Nana Agyenim Boateng of the United Front Party (UFP) – have also been disqualified by EC for allegedly forging signatures of voters to endorse their nomination forms.
But Mr Odike has denied forging signatures, stressing that the NPP has deliberately influenced the EC to disqualify him for their electoral advantage.
Meanwhile the rest are yet to comment on their disqualification by EC allegedly due to their having forged signatures of voters.
The EC has assured the public that the signatures were confirmed as forged by the Criminal Investigations Department(CID) of the Ghana Police Service.
Some legal practitioners have, however, argued that relying on the CID to disqualify aspirants without verifying with the persons whose signatures have been allegedly forged is a bit hasty and unfair to the disqualified aspirants.
They contend that the due diligence must be thorough given the high office the the aspirants are seeking to occupy.
