…To run from 2024 violent election prediction; Sulemana Braimah’s Media Foundation caught in mischief

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission, has chosen an undiplomatic path and dirty language in reaction to a leaked draft report prepared by a Pre-election Fact-finding Mission to assess Ghana’s state of preparedness ahead of the December 7, General Elections, which predicted violent polls as a result of a “tense” political environment in the country. 

Interestingly, The Herald, has since traced the ECOWAS statement , which was wrongly dated 21 August 2023, to Sulemana Braimah’s Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) in which the body in an email to media houses stated that, The Herald, had mentioned that there was going to be a “war” in Ghana ahead of the 2024 polls.

MFWA wrote, “Dear Colleagues, I hope this email finds you well. Yesterday, August 21, 2024, ECOWAS issued a statement to debunk a news report carried by The Herald Newspaper, suggesting that the regional body has predicted war in Ghana ahead of the December 7 elections. Attached is the statement. Kindly assist in republishing it”, said the email from the so-called media ombudsman in Ghana, which has been flagging media houses and personalities for what it sees as unprofessional conduct of media houses and journalists.

 The Commission used words such as “The Herald tabloid”, “partisan conclusion”, and “disingenuously” among others, saying it was an “attempts by sections of the media to misuse the name of ECOWAS in their vain attempts to sow discord among the over 32 million peace-loving people of Ghana through manipulation, partisan positions and veiled incitement to intolerance and violence”.

The one-page statement, which was unsigned and had no designated official, denied authoring any report about the trip to Ghana, in which violence was predicted at the December 7, 2024 election.

 It, however, said that even if there was a report, such “reports of such missions are confidential and meant only for the eyes of the President of the Commission to aid his engagements with the authorities in the Member States”.  

Strangely, even though the statement denied the existence of a report, saying “the Commission categorically denounces the tabloid’s dishonest reportage”, revealed that “the preliminary report is still undergoing quality control”.

The commission’s statement had said “To educate The Herald, ECOWAS pre-electoral Missions do not issue statements on their findings. Besides, reports of such missions are confidential and meant only for the eyes of the President of the Commission to aid his engagements with the authorities in the Member States.

“In this instance, the preliminary report is still undergoing quality control. At no time before, during and after the Fact-Finding Mission, has ECOWAS ‘predicted violence’ in the electoral process. The Commission therefore finds it preposterous that The Herald would disingenuously repeat the standard operating procedures of ECOWAS fact-finding missions, twist issues that are in the public domain in Ghana and try to push its partisan conclusions into the mouth of ECOWAS.

“The ECOWAS Commission rightly holds Ghana in high esteem as a model of maturing democracy and tolerance on the continent and often cites the country for regulation in the region. The Commission, therefore, condemns any attempts by sections of the media to misuse the name of ECOWAS in their vain attempts to sow discord among the over 32 million peace-loving people of Ghana through manipulation, partisan positions and veiled incitement to intolerance and violence. Ghana deserves better,” the commission stated.

This paper on Wednesday, reported from a draft statement in circulation on various social media platforms, saying an ECOWAS Mission, has predicted violence in the 2024 election, blaming it on tension and “mistrust” of some state institutions, including the Electoral Commission (EC), the Judiciary, and the security agencies, particularly the Police Service, after a meeting with their leaders and management last month.

It also said that, “Misinformation, disinformation, and the use of inciteful languages that have the potential to trigger violence, were flagged as a major security threat. Some leading political figures and candidates were identified as perpetrators of inciteful language. In this regard, the Mission believes that the media, including social media platforms, constitute a serious threat to a peaceful electoral process, as they serve as the channels for dissemination”.

 “The political environment in Ghana remains tense as a result of mistrust of some of the institutions that play key roles in the conduct of the elections, including the EC, the Judiciary, and the security agencies, particularly the Police Service”.

The Herald has, however, sighted a press release dated July 23, 2024, on the official website of the CDD, which confirms that the ECOWAS Mission was in Ghana and met with CSO.

It reads “A high-level delegation from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) led by Dr Abdel-Fatau Musah, the Political Affairs, Peace, and Security Commissioner, has met CSOs, including CDD-Ghana, the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) and Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA).

“The visit gave the delegation the opportunity to interact with CSOs and other stakeholders as part of ECOWAS’ quest to ensure electoral integrity ahead of elections in member states.

“The delegation gathered information from stakeholders about Ghana’s electoral process. Providing a background to their visit, the Political Affairs, Peace and Security Commissioner highlighted the governance deficits in the region, such as attempts to manipulate elections and constitutions to accommodate elongation of presidential term limits; recent coup d’états in Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali; and the complexities introduced by various international alliances, and the need to improve the quality of democracy, as motivating factors for their visit.

“The purpose of our visit is to have informed views about the electoral process as Ghana gears towards the 2024 elections. We are here to meet all the key stakeholders and critical voices in the electoral process to gauge the state of preparedness of the country,” Dr Abdel-Fatau Musah stated.

“ECOWAS is at a crucial juncture for regional integration in West Africa. Our objective is to make sure that we strengthen member states like Ghana, which has had uninterrupted regular elections since 1992. We are here to look at what is being done right, identify gaps, and work together to mitigate any potential crisis points in the upcoming elections,” he added.

It said that Dr Kojo Asante, Director of Policy Engagement and Partnerships at the Center in his presentation, provided an overview of Ghana’s current political and electoral landscape.

He highlighted the upcoming elections as a critical juncture for addressing pressing issues such as economic hardships, youth unemployment, and governance challenges. Dr. Asante also underscored the significance of ensuring the Electoral Commission’s independence as part of efforts to gain citizens’ confidence and trust, tackling political vigilantism, mitigating electoral violence, and combating misinformation and disinformation, all of which are pivotal in shaping voter sentiments and the integrity of the electoral process.

Joining CDD-Ghana in hosting the delegation, were leaders from various civil society organizations (CSOs) including – Madam Mary Addah (GII), Madam Beauty Emefa Nartey (GACC), Dr Kojo Impraim (MFWA), and Mr Paul N. K. Aborampah Mensah, Mr Albert Arhin and Amb. Francis Tsegah, of the Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO).

The ECOWAS delegation plans to prepare a detailed report to determine their intervention strategy ahead of Ghana’s December 7 elections.

They also intend to deploy long-term observer missions by October, followed by short-term observers, to ensure the elections are inclusive, transparent, and credible in the subregion.

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