The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has expressed admiration for Ghana’s political culture, where it is rare for politicians to switch parties ahead of each general election—a stark contrast to the frequent party defections seen in Nigeria.
Yakubu also praised Ghana’s electoral process, highlighting its innovations and political stability as crucial elements contributing to the smooth conduct of the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.
Ghana’s former president, John Dramani Mahama, emerged victorious in the presidential race on Saturday after his main rival, Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), conceded defeat.
In a statement to the press, Vice President Bawumia confirmed that Mahama’s National Democratic Congress (NDC) also secured a win in the parliamentary elections.
He added that he had personally called Mahama to congratulate him on the victory.
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“The people of Ghana have spoken and they have voted for change at this time. We respect this with all humility,” Bawumia said.
The defeat in Saturday’s election marks the end of two terms in power for the ruling party under President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose tenure has been overshadowed by Ghana’s worst economic crisis in years, characterized by soaring inflation and a debt default.
Professor Yakubu, who monitored the election alongside Yiaga Africa observers, highlighted in a brief video the political stability embedded in Ghana’s democratic system, pointing to the enduring strength of its political parties and the consistent loyalty of its voters.
He also acknowledged the perseverance of the main opposition candidate, a former vice president, as well as the current president, Nana Akufo-Addo, who contested several elections before ultimately securing victory.
“Rarely in Ghana do you see people moving from one party to another with every general election. So, that is important.
“It provides stability. It also provides their supporters with stability. So, there are people who have supported political parties for many years. So, whether the party is in power or opposition, they stick to the political party,” Yakubu said.
He also emphasized that Ghana’s adoption of a results management approach at the constituency level, inspired by Nigeria, has enhanced the efficiency of the electoral process.
In the past, all parliamentary and presidential results were sent to the Electoral Commission’s headquarters in Accra for announcement.
However, Ghana has now implemented a decentralized system, enabling constituency-level officers to announce parliamentary results locally, while only presidential results are transmitted to Accra, similar to the system used in Nigeria.
He said, “The second thing for me is the lesson that Ghana also learnt from Nigeria in the area of managing constituency election results. Until the last election in Ghana, all results come to the Electoral Commission’s headquarters in Accra; which is parliamentary and presidential.
“Although Ghana is not a federal system, they learnt from Nigeria where you have returning officers who announce results for parliamentary elections in the various constituencies around the country. Only the presidential election results come to Accra.
“In Nigeria, this is what we have done and they borrowed a leave from us, and this is the second time they are implementing that. That is why, as you can see, the declaration of the presidential election result was a lot faster than it used to be in the past.”
Yakubu also conveyed his satisfaction with the process.
He said, “We are grateful that the election has gone very well. The process and its outcome so far have been commendable, and we continue to support our colleagues in Ghana’s Electoral Commission.”
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