“I have said that we believe in elections, and I am happy to give my word that we shall accept the verdict of the people of Ghana.
“Above all, I pledge that the peace, unity and safety of Ghana will be our primary consideration”.
These were the words of Ghanaian president and presidential flag-bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), assuring Ghanaians that December 07, 2020, general elections will be free and fair.
Akufo-Addo, who made this pledge on his verified Twitter handle, is seeking re-election for a second term in office.
His major challenger is his predecessor in office, John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Akufo-Addo and his predecessor, John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress, will lock horns at the polls on Monday.
In 2012, Mahama narrowly defeated Akufo-Addo with 50.7 per cent of the vote and in 2016, Akufo-Addo beat Mahama with 53.8 per cent.
Ten other candidates, including three women, are vying for the nation’s top job but the vote is essentially a contest between Akufo-Addo and Mahama who will be slugging it out for the third time.
More than 17 million people are registered to vote in the West African nation’s eighth consecutive poll since it returned to democracy decades ago.
Many Ghanaians are, however, worried that vigilantes hired by parties and deployed to provide security for politicians could cause problems at polling stations, according to AFP.
Ghana has traditionally managed to contain post-electoral violence and have a peaceful transition of power — a rarity in much of West Africa.
Even so, there have been pre-election clashes and disagreements over the neutrality of the electoral commission, especially on the compilation of the new voters’ register.
The police say more than 62,000 personnel have been deployed.
The PUNCH had earlier reported that former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo cautioned Akufo-Addo and Mahama against violence before, during, and after Monday’s general elections.
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