Parallel tabulation of election results not new – Kofi Adams

National Organizer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Kofi Adams, has downplayed the opposition New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) plans to tabulate results of the election alongside the Electoral Commission (EC).

According to Mr. Adams, political parties have always engaged in some form of parallel tabulation as a means of verification.

“That is why the Electoral Commission gave every party that is at the polling station the results sheet,” he retorted.

NPP to ‘declare its own results’

Mr. Adams was speaking to Citi News in response to reports saying the NPP Campaign Manager, Peter Mac Manu, said that his party would announce its own election results during the November polls.

But Mr. Mac Manu later asserted that his comments were taken out of context. According to him, he was only serving notice that the NPP will engage in the parallel tabulation of the results alongside the EC.

Parallel tabulation used for verification

The NDC National Organizer, however, explained that tabulation of results at the polling centres is no innovation as political parties have been using it to challenge perceived anomalies at collation centres.

“You cannot declare your own results, however, the results declaration sheet that you are given will serve as the basis for you to challenge anything that you say was uncovered and that must be done and could be done at the collation centre before any of the results are added; and that has always been happening.”

Nothing wrong with parallel tabulation

Mr. Adams maintained that “there is absolutely nothing wrong with that” while noting that the NDC had used the parallel tabulation as a means of verification in past general elections.

He, however, stated that the line had to be drawn when attempts are made to supersede the EC.

“There is absolutely no wrong in saying that you are going to tabulate it, but you cannot declare results… You cannot force the Electoral Commission to accept your figures unless you produce the results declaration sheet that you used in doing your tabulation. It has been made available to you, and you use that to cross-check even before the results is tabulated at the constituency level.”