The Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) has said that its preliminary investigation reveals that the envelope handed over to its polling station officials during the by-election in Ejisu contained money for lunch.
The two polling station officials are seen in a video that has gone viral being offered a white envelope by a man.
According to the Commission, the benefactor offered the money on his own volition.
“Our investigations further revealed that the man in the video, walked to their table and enquired whether they had eaten. He then placed the envelope on the table and asked them to use the contents of the envelope for their lunch, following which he walked away,” the Deputy Chairman in charge of Operations at the Electoral Commission, Samuel Tettey stated in a release dated April 30, 2024.
In the release, the EC named the two officials as, Regina Serwaa, Ballot Issuer and George Sasu, Presiding Officer.
“Following the incident that occurred during the conduct of the Ejisu By-Election today Tuesday 30th April, 2024, the Commission has undertaken preliminary investigations. The investigations revealed that the officers at the said Polling Station namely, Fumesua Pentecost Church Polling Station with Polling Station Code F311503, were Temporary Election Officials of the Electoral Commission recruited to conduct the Ejisu By-Election,” the Commission revealed.
The Electoral Commission further stated that it ” has taken the following actions: • Withdrawn with immediate effect, the services of the two (2) Temporary Election Officers. • Held preliminary discussions with the Ghana Police Service to kick start the process for criminal investigations into the matter,” the release concluded.
Although the EC did not name the man at the center of the bribery allegation, subsequent interviews he granted to journalists revealed his identity as the NPP MP for Kwadaso, Dr Kingsley Nyarko.
He denied any wrongdoing.
“I have not engaged in anything that will undermine the election. If I was doing anything wrong, when I put the document on the table, the polling agents there, wouldn’t they have protested?” he asked journalists who questioned his motive.