‘We’ve been here before’ – Gbande says NDC abandoned expanded internal voting after challenges

Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mustapha Gbande, says his party has previously experimented with expanding participation in its internal elections to all members but was forced to abandon the system after encountering significant challenges. His comments come after the Supreme Court ruled that the delegate system used by political parties to elect presidential and parliamentary candidates is unconstitutional and directed that all registered, card-bearing members should participate in such primaries. Speaking on Joy News’ PM Express on Wednesday, Mr Gbande said the concept is not unfamiliar to the NDC.

“But as far as this matter is concerned, it is not new to the NDC as a party. We’ve been here before in our own account, where we sought to deepen our participation, widen it to all members. We had our challenges with it, and we had to abandon it at some point in time.” He described the court’s decision as one that requires careful study before the party adopts an official position.

“This particular one is a body imposing on all of us to do it; the party is yet to read a judgment, come to a full appreciation of what the prevailing issues are.” Mr Gbande said the ruling raises practical questions that political parties must confront, particularly over funding and the organisation of nationwide internal elections. “Number one, who is going to bear the cost of the election? Because even managing our own college system, you would have to pay, sometimes, the Electoral Commission to supervise that election for it to be credible.

Is it the case that the state would do that?” He also questioned how parties would mobilise the large number of members expected to vote under the new arrangement. “Now, who is going to do some mobilisation? It’s not easy to mobilise the number of people we are talking about, even to a voting centre, even if we are going to do it like that, or we are going to do it on an electoral area basis, or we are going to do it this district or constituency basis, it comes with its own challenges.” According to him, the NDC will first study the judgment and seek legal guidance before deciding its next steps.

“And so the party would now sit, read the judgment, understand all the issues that the court has raised and resolved. If there are any issues that we will seek clarification on in the judgment, that will be done.…