STATEMENT: Respect The Law…COUNT, RECORD & SEAL Ballot Box Says NPP

The Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, has asked Ghanaians and all institutions involved in the conduct of the 2012 elections as well as the political parties to respect the electoral laws governing this election.
The NPP sympathises with Ghanaians who have been on their feet, in some instances, for over 11 hours and yet have been disappointed because they could not vote.
The NPP understands that the EC is preparing to continue the process tomorrow and that areas where voting was stopped due to a lack of functional verification machines will vote tomorrow. In such areas, the process, according to the law must be:
1.      COUNT the votes already deposited in the ballot box by biometrically verified voters
2.      RECORD the votes counted
3.      SEAL the ballot box (done by representatives of all parties)
The remaining votes unable to be cast because of verification machine issues will be cast beginning on Saturday morning.  Note that this process of COUNT, RECORD, SEAL only applies to polling stations in which machines failed to function.  In polling places with functioning machines, voting must continue on Friday until all voters who had queued before 5:00 pm have cast their votes.
We further call upon all members of the security services to discharge their duties with integrity, in order to preserve a legal and legitimate election according to the COUNT, RECORD, SEAL process.  If the COUNT, RECORD, SEAL process is not followed, we may seek to annul the results of the votes already cast, and to hold fresh elections.
It is a proud tradition that in every successive Ghanaian election, we strengthen the electoral system and therefore we believe Ghanaians will bear the inconvenience of continuing to vote tomorrow, rather than open this election to manipulation and in the process destroy the legitimacy we seek as a society.
Ghana is at an important crossroads. NPP urges Ghanaians to support the EC to deliver a clean, free, fair and legitimate election.
……signed……
Jake Obetsebi Lamptey
NPP National Chairman