NDC says it can meet Supreme Court deadline for one-member-one-vote elections

The governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) says it is confident it can comply with the Supreme Court's order requiring political parties to replace Ghana's delegate system with a one-member-one-vote model within a year.

National Chairman Johnson Asiedu Nketia told PM Express on JoyNews, monitored by The Executive Spotlight, that the party already has a credible membership register, making the court's deadline achievable.

"Yeah, sure. We can do it," he said.

His comments come days after the Supreme Court ruled, by a 5-2 majority, that restricting political party primaries to selected delegates is unconstitutional because it denies ordinary party members the right to participate directly in choosing presidential and parliamentary candidates.

The landmark judgment gives political parties and the state one year to amend their constitutions and electoral processes to introduce a one-member-one-vote system.

Mr Asiedu Nketia said the biggest requirement for implementing the new system was a credible membership register, adding that the remaining logistical arrangements could be completed within the court's timeline.

"The most important thing in such elections is the register. If you get a correct register, then you are good to go," he said.

However, he warned that conducting elections under the new system would substantially increase the cost of organising party primaries.

Under the current delegate system, parties print fewer than 400,000 ballot papers, he said. A nationwide vote involving all eligible members would require between one million and two million ballot papers, as well as more polling stations, election materials and election officials.

The NDC chairman cited the party's 2014 internal elections, when it piloted a one-member-one-vote system by opening more than 8,000 polling stations across more than 6,000 electoral areas.

He said the exercise cost the party nearly 14 million cedis, illustrating the financial burden of conducting nationwide internal elections.

Mr Asiedu Nketia argued that the Electoral Commission should conduct future party elections at the state's expense, saying political parties should not bear the full cost of implementing what has become a constitutional requirement.

"My expectation is that since we are being compelled to help citizens exercise their democratic rights, the state should budget for this exercise so the Electoral Commission can conduct it free of charge," he said.

He also backed proposals to establish an independent office to regulate political parties, saying it would ensure that only organisations meeting constitutional requirements are recognised as political parties.

Despite the financial implications, Mr Asiedu Nketia said the NDC's previous experience with the one-member-one-vote system gave him confidence that the party could comply with the Supreme Court's deadline.

"If we had stayed on course, we would have perfected this now and taken advantage of its advantages. But it's not too late," he said.