Governance expert Professor Baffour Agyemang Duah has criticised the appointment of Emelia Affi Agbenyo as a Deputy Chairperson of Ghana’s Electoral Commission, saying the process should have prioritised candidates without known political affiliations.
Professor Agyemang Duah said Ms Agbenyo’s appointment would not determine the outcome of an election, but argued that the standards for selecting commissioners should be raised.
“This appointee is not going to make any difference in terms of who wins the elections,” he said on TV3’s Key Points on Saturday, October 17.
“Can she on her own manipulate the process? I don’t think so, but as we try to raise the bar, there is a high expectation that those who are appointed to this commission are not known for their party affiliations.”
Lawyer Martin Kpebu also opposed the appointment, saying Ms Agbenyo’s known links to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) could weaken the independence of the Electoral Commission.
“The appointment of Emelia Agbenyo looks like a fairy tale to me. This appointment doesn’t make sense to me at all because we complained the same when Akufo-Addo made similar appointments. The appointment of Emelia Agbenyo will weaken the independence of the Electoral Commission,” he said on Key Points on Saturday, October 17.
“I support the call by CODEO for Emelia Agbenyo to resign from her position due to her affiliation to the NDC.”
The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), which comprises more than 41 member organisations, has called for Ms Agbenyo to resign. It said its concerns related not to her professional qualifications or technical ability, but to the need to protect public confidence in the Electoral Commission’s impartiality.
President John Dramani Mahama administered the oath of office to Ms Agbenyo and Joseph Kwaku Asamoah on October 12, 2026. He instructed them to carry out their constitutional responsibilities independently, firmly and impartially.
Mr Mahama said neither he nor his administration should receive preferential treatment from the Electoral Commission, and directed the new commissioners to apply the law equally to all political parties and candidates.
CODEO said public evidence showed Ms Agbenyo had actively supported the NDC during the 2024 general election campaign. In August 2024, the party listed her among its sectoral spokespersons for its manifesto, under governance. Her LinkedIn biography also identified her as a spokesperson for the governance sector during the NDC campaign.
On 20 September 2024, she posted a video featuring the then NDC presidential candidate, accompanied by the party’s campaign song, Asempa by NACEE, and the hashtags #a_democracy_to_salvage and #voteforchange2024.
On 31 October, she posted a photograph of John Dramani Mahama with the caption: “To salvage our democracy, to restore good governance, reset our nation on the path of thriving democracy.” The post included #voteJM2024 and #voteforchange2024.
On 2 December 2024, a post on her X account said: “I will be voting against a government that ridiculed the pains of the people. Imposing a nuisance levy on citizens is not a thing to celebrate. Governance is no joke, citizens are not your enemies.” It included #salvageourdemocracy, #voteforchange2024, #VoteJohnMahama2024 and #EndTyranny.
CODEO said it had repeatedly called for broader consultation over Electoral Commission appointments since the departure of founding chair Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan. It made similar appeals during the appointments of Ms Charlotte Osei in 2014 and Mrs Jean Mensah, Dr Bossman Asare and Mr Samuel Tetteh in 2018.
In 2023, CODEO, STAR-Ghana Foundation and Civic Forum Initiative called for the resignation of Dr Peter Appiahene because of concerns over his alleged affiliation with the New Patriotic Party. The appointment was criticised by several groups, including the NDC, and prompted then presidential aspirant John Mahama to call for reforms.
CODEO said the Council of State’s role also required scrutiny because the Constitution requires the President to appoint Electoral Commission members on its advice, rather than in consultation with it. The organisation said the Council had not created a transparent process through which citizens could assess how it performed that responsibility.
It also recalled that, in March 2023, Mr Mahama criticised the appointment of “known party activists” to the Electoral Commission and supported amending Article 43(2) of the 1992 Constitution to require parliamentary approval for new commissioners.
CODEO said those principles should apply to appointments made under his administration. It called on Mr Mahama to ask Ms Agbenyo to resign, urged the government to introduce transparent, merit-based appointments with parliamentary oversight, and requested that the Council of State make its procedures more open.
The group said the Constitutional Review Committee had recommended an open, competitive and merit-based process involving a reformed Council of State, the Public Services Commission and prior parliamentary approval. However, the Government’s Position Paper rejected changes to the existing system, while saying the President could adopt transparent and merit-based procedures.
CODEO said the controversy demonstrated the need for reforms to protect the Electoral Commission from actual or perceived partisan influence before appointments were made.
