Former Nigerian Vice President Namadi Sambo has been appointed to head the 120-member ECOWAS Observation Mission for Ghana’s upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary elections scheduled for December 7, 2024.
ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, announced the appointment following Sambo’s acceptance during a meeting with an ECOWAS delegation at his Abuja residence on Tuesday. The delegation was led by ECOWAS Commission President Omar Alieu Touray.
During the visit, President Touray briefed Sambo on Ghana’s political climate and the Commission’s arrangements to ensure successful election monitoring.
Accepting the role, Sambo reflected on his previous experience: “This is a service to the Community,” referencing his successful leadership of the ECOWAS observation mission during Niger Republic’s 2020 general elections.
The appointment comes at a crucial time in Ghana’s political landscape. Incumbent President Nana Akufo-Addo is ineligible for re-election, having served his constitutional maximum of two terms.
The political environment is marked by tension between the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ghana’s two dominant political forces.
Ghana’s current political situation is particularly complex, with a hung parliament where neither party holds a majority in the 275-seat legislature.
This unique situation has resulted in the opposition NDC providing the Speaker of the House.
The December 7 presidential race has attracted an unprecedented 39 candidates – 12 representing political parties and 27 running as independents. The NDC’s candidate is former President John Mahama, while the NPP is fielding current Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia.
In July, ECOWAS conducted a fact-finding mission to assess Ghana’s election preparedness.
The country, with an estimated population of 34.4 million, has over 18.7 million registered voters and 27 registered political parties.
A recent development has required the Electoral Commission (EC) to request the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP) to nominate a new presidential candidate following the death of their nominee, Madam Akua Donkor.
