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A delegation from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) led by former Liberian President, Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has paid a courtesy call on Ghana’s Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey on Wednesday.
The delegation is in Ghana to observe the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections to be held on Monday, December 7, 2020 in accordance with ECOWAS Protocol on Good Governance and Democracy.
Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was accompanied by Marjon Kamara, former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Liberia and former Liberian Ambassador to the UN; and Lewis Brown, former Minister for Information, Culture and Tourism of Liberia.
Recalling the recent visit of the joint ECOWAS and AU pre-election team that was in Ghana to assess the country’s preparedness towards the general elections, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey acknowledged the importance of elections in accessing the quality of a country’s governance system.
During the meeting, she noted that Ghana is committed to promoting democracy, good governance, respect for human rights and the rule of law, which have underpinned the country’s democratic governance since 1992.
However, the Foreign Minister mentioned that specific measures have been put in place by the Government, the Electoral Commission and the National Election Security Architecture, headed by the Inspector General of Police, towards the establishment of Joint Operation Centers (JOCs), physical training and capacity building in the prosecution of electoral offences, with the overall goal of promoting violence free and tension-free elections.
Expressing the hope that stakeholders will put the interest of the country above all other considerations with the view to maintaining Ghana’s enviable image as a beacon of democracy in the region, she also added that “as a testament to the many efforts stakeholders have put in place to ensure the conduct of peaceful elections, the special voting exercise organized on Tuesday ahead of the general election took place in a peaceful manner.”
She went ahead to underscore the importance of unifying the people of Ghana before, during and after the elections in order to promote an effective and structured framework for nation building, and to bring about lasting peace and sustainable development in Ghana.”
Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey continued to express the hope that the ECOWAS Observer Mission will perform their duty and attest to the credibility of the elections at the end of the whole process.
She commended the outstanding work done so far by ECOWAS towards the conduct of peaceful, free, fair and transparent elections in the region and for the ongoing efforts at calming political unrests in Mali, Guinea and Cote d’ Ivoire.
The Minister further assured the delegation of the Government of Ghana’s commitment to working closely with stakeholders towards the conduct of a violence free, peaceful, fair and transparent elections.
