Concerns have been expressed over the continued stay in office of David Asante Boateng, the Managing Director (MD) of the Ghana Publishing Company.

The Ghana Publishing Company is responsible for printing ballot papers for the upcoming elections, and its head Asante Boateng is a prominent member of the pro-New Patriotic Party (NPP) group Let My Vote Count Alliance, advocating for electoral reforms.

Thus, critics, especially within the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), argue his position at Ghana Publishing Company could present a conflict of interest.

The NDC posits Asante Boateng’s influence in overseeing the printing of the ballot papers could lead to irregularities, such as overprinting, that might skew the election results in favour of the governing NPP, thereby undermining the integrity of the electoral process and compromising its fairness.

A high-ranking member of the NDC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, stressed the importance of addressing this issue to avoid potential electoral malpractices.

“While we celebrate the symbolic 8th position on the ballot for various reasons, we must remain vigilant against any covert or overt attempts by the Electoral Commission (EC) to influence the outcome of the elections. David Asante’s role as both an NPP candidate and head of the institution responsible for printing the ballot papers is a clear conflict of interest. He should have been relieved of his duties immediately after his nomination as the parliamentary candidate to prevent any suspicion of foul play,” he stressed.

This concern comes against the backdrop of the NDC’s scepticism over the EC’s handling of the electoral process in recent years.

The opposition party has consistently accused the Jean Mensa-led commission of favouring the ruling NPP, raising alarms over various issues, including discrepancies in the compilation of the new voters register, and the exclusion of the guarantor system in the limited voter registration exercise.

To safeguard the integrity of the elections, some key stakeholders have called for Mr Asante’s immediate removal from his role as Managing Director of Ghana Publishing Company, arguing this was a necessary step in preventing any potential conflict of interest and to assure all political parties and Ghanaians of a fair and transparent electoral process.