Election observers commends Ghana' 2000 election

The Ghana Legal Literacy and Resource Foundation, an independent non-governmental organisation (NGO) which observed the 2000 general elections, on Saturday commended the electoral process and described it as "largely free and fair."

"The voting process was largely free from violence, intimidation and other election malpractice," the Foundation said. "Although there were a few isolated incidents, these did not affect the smooth running of the polls."

Mr Justice Kingsley-Nyinah, Chairman and Ms Dorcas Coker-Appiah, Vice Chairman of the Foundation said this in a release they jointly signed in Accra. The release said the Foundation observed 50 constituencies in five regions. They are the Central, Greater Accra, Eastern, Volta and the Western regions.

Two hundred and fifty well-trained members were used for the exercise and 12 seasoned and experienced board members supervised. As part of its findings, the foundation said most polling stations opened on time and election materials were generally available.

"We further noted a high level of co-operation between electoral officials and party agents that facilitated the smooth conduct of the polling.

"There was a marked absence of voters with thumb-printed identity cards even in the rural areas," the release reported. The Foundation therefore described the elections as largely free and fair, saying, "the integrity of the ballot was maintained."