During an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting held on Friday, 15 November 2024, the EC disclosed this decision. To ensure transparency, the Commission has committed to including representatives of political parties in overseeing the destruction process.
In a statement issued on 16 November, the EC stated:
“The re-printing of the ballot papers for Ahafo and Volta Regions will be undertaken by Buck Press and Acts Commercials respectively. As has always been the case, the affected ballot papers will be shredded and incinerated (burned). Both activities will be witnessed by Agents of the Political Parties and a Destruction Certificate will be issued and signed by them.”
The EC explained that the errors were caused by deficiencies in an automated system designed to ensure precise serialisation. To address the issue, the Printing House adopted a manual process. However, after further evaluation, this manual system was deemed unreliable.
“Upon further assessment, the Commission decided that the manual system was not fool-proof and could therefore not be relied upon to produce an accurate serialisation of the ballots. In light of the above, the Commission decided to reprint the ballot papers and informed the Political Parties at an Emergency IPAC Meeting on Friday, 15th November 2024.”
The Commission has assured all stakeholders that it will take all necessary measures to maintain transparency and uphold trust in the electoral process.