The Convention People’s Party (CPP), has backed the decision by the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), to sue the Electoral Commission over what the parties have described as high filing fees for presidential and parliamentary nominees.
The EC is accepting GHC50, 000 as nomination fee for persons seeking to run for president and GHC10, 000 for parliamentary aspirants.
Communications Director of the CPP, Kadir Abdul Rauf Issifu, believes the action by the PPP is in the right direction as his party will also come out with strategies to continuously oppose the ‘high’ filing fee until it is reviewed downwards.
“As a political party, the CPP has raised its voice against the exorbitant filing fees and we have also stated on occasional instances that we are going to oppose it using every means possible so if the PPP chose to go to court, which is also a legitimate means I do not think that there should be any qualms with that.”
“We will encourage them so to do, and that we would also add up our own strategies in our own ways to ensure that the Electoral Commission brings down the cut throat filing fees. I am telling you that it is a democracy, they have chosen that path and that path is legitimate so let them pursue it. We do not have difficulty with that. We would also use all the resources and all the channels available to express and register our displeasure until the Electoral Commission does the right thing by bringing down the fees,” he said on Accra-based Citi FM.
Meanwhile, the EC had earlier indicated that it may review the figures after some political parties argued that the filing fee was exorbitant.
The ‘high’ filing fee notwithstanding, about 15 presidential nominees have picked up nomination forms to contest the December 7 polls.
The parties are: the Democratic People’s Party (DPP), the All People’s Party (APP), the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), the United Development System Party (UDSP), the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the National Democratic Party (NDP), the United Love Party (ULP). Others are the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Independent People’s Party (IPP), the United Front Party (UFP), the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP) and the United Progressive Party (UPP).