“I Was Conscious Of My Disqualification A Year Ago”- Akwasi Addae Odike

The Presidential aspirant of the United Progressive Party (UPP) Akwasi Addae Odike, has revealed that his office was mindful of his disqualification by the Electoral Commission (EC), a decision that has prevented him from contesting as a presidential candidate in the upcoming December 7 general elections.

According to the presidential aspirant, he had been reliably informed by insiders in the EC that the ruling government was vehemently opposed to his filing as a presidential candidate for the UPP.

Speaking in an interview with Plan B FM, he disclosed that despite being mindful of his impending disqualification, he took extreme precautions and was extra vigilant during the filling process. He stressed that the government was at loggerheads with him due to his public criticism of the government.

Mr. Odike accused the sitting president, Nana Akufo-Addo of fighting personalities who had been or still are vocal about the pervasive corruption and rot in his government.
According to UPP flagbearer, about 80% of the presidential candidates the EC cleared to contest in the 2020 December 7 elections are pro-NPP, always aligning with the ruling party and have never spoken openly against the numerous scandals bedevilling the NPP government.

Disqualification of Presidential candidates

Out of the total 17 aspirants who submitted their nomination forms to be considered as presidential candidates, the Electoral Commission disqualified five, preventing them from contesting in the upcoming polls.

The EC indicated that a myriad of issues triggered the disqualification, ranging from allegations of forgery of signatures to manufacturing of endorses. Information from the EC has also revealed that these cases would be forwarded to the Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for further investigations to be carried out.

Addressing the media, the EC Chairperson, Jean Mensa stressed that the decision to disqualify these aspirants was based on the reports the commission received from its technical team, when the process of verification was completed. The EC boss however indicated that all disqualified aspirants would receive the full refund of the ¢100,000 filing fee.

The aspirants affected aside Akwasi Odike of the United Progressive Party (UPP) include independent candidates Kofi Koranteng, Marricke Kofi Gane, Kwasi Busumburu of the People’s Action Party (PAP), and the United Front Party’s (UFP) Agyenim Boateng.