EC saga: NDC digs own grave

He said the NDC’s precipitate defensive actions, without waiting for the blood to cool and reason to assume its seat when the petition against their appointed Electoral Commission Chairperson became public knowledge, may see all the three Commissioners appointed by the NDC, or a number of them, whipped out of office and new ones appointed by their so-called adversaries, the New Patriotic Party (NPP). 
According to him, Mrs Osei, in response to a petition filed by anonymous staff of the Electoral Commission (EC), descended into the gutters by casting aspersion on her two Deputy Commissioners.
He noted that the leadership of the NDC, in and out of Parliament, jumped to the defence of Mrs Osei and, without producing any evidence, charged the NPP government in several statements and interviews published in the media with witch-hunting her from office. 
In the view of Amidu, the two Deputy Electoral Commissioners, who were also appointed to the Commission by the past NDC government, felt compelled to explain their versions in response to the unusual accusations from their Chairperson in the media as though they supported the petition against Mrs Osei. 
He noted that the responses of the two Deputy Commissioners, who had been longer on the job than the Chairperson, cannot be said to be witch-hunting by the NPP.
Petitioner against 2 deputies is NDC member
According to him, Emmanuel Korsi Senyo, the concerned citizen who filed a petition for removal of the two deputies of the EC, acted in the past as an NDC surrogate commencing action against the General Legal Council, and had contested the primaries in Madina for the NDC. 
The second petition is not, therefore, from any witches from the NPP, let alone to hunt the Deputy Commissioners, he added.
“This discovery made me to find out whether the NDC could blame anybody should the investigations of the three petitions lead to the removal of all three Commissioners and how that was going to be an achievement for the NDC. 
“Certainly, the NPP would then appoint all the three new Commissioners should the independent committee investigating the allegations contained in the three petitions find all three Commissioners guilty of the charges against them. 
“So, I asked my NDC colleagues the question: why did the defence of the Chairperson get the NDC so incensed that their surrogates decided to throw out the baby with the bath water by petitioning against their two other appointees?
“Should all the three Commissioners or one or two be removed from office, the NDC can only have itself to blame for its predicament and not any witch-hunters from the NPP after being petitioners ourselves to facilitate the possible removal of all three Commissioners.”
He asked what the political utility of the NDC would be if the committees do find even the two Deputy Commissioners guilty as charged. 
Amidu said this is happening because NDC members remained silent and allowed charlatans and strangers to our values and ideals to hijack the NDC and alienate the most committed, selfless and experienced strategic and tactical founding thinkers of the party. 
Amidu faults Mrs Osei
The former Attorney General said Mrs Osei completely lost her comportment, decorum and, above all, the high moral character and proven integrity to exhibit absolute patience in the face of every provocation so as to maintain the honour and dignity of her high office as the Electoral Commissioner and of the Commission as a whole, simply because the constitutional right of petitioning for her removal had been invoked against her. 
“Come what may, the Chairperson of the Commission had a supreme responsibility to maintain the integrity of the priceless Commission of which she had leadership. 
“She should not have allowed herself to have been baited into fighting and exchanging vituperative words publicly with both Deputy Commissioners and other members of management. 
Mrs Osei exhibited incompetence and lack of leadership skills
“Speaking for myself, she once more exhibited her incompetence and lack of leadership skills, that in my view rendered her unfit for appointment to the high office of Electoral Commissioner in the first place.”
According to Amidu, the NDC, which had alienated almost all their experienced and founding strategic and tactical thinking members, just could not think very deeply of the consequences of their three appointees fighting each other in public at the Commission.