Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Presidential Candidate of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Tuesday affirmed his confidence in the ability of the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct free, fair and transparent polls on December 7.

He said: "The Commission's track record over the past years and the professional competence of the Commissioners and staffs, which the international community attest to, gives me and my party the guarantee of their ability to manage Election 2008, professionally in accordance with international electoral norms".

Speaking in an interview with Ghana News Agency in Accra, the NPP Presidential Candidate, who is also a Member of Parliament for Abuakwa South, said the EC through the preparatory stages of Election 2008 have exhibited their tenacity and ability to withstand the storm and to steer the December polls creditably for acceptable results.

Nana Akufo-Addo said: "The involvement of local and international observers, who have been deployed throughout the country; EC's interaction with political party representatives through the platform of the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) and educational tour of the Commission's premises by party executives gives me the cause to trust the Commission."

Speaking on the role of the media as the nation moved towards Election Day, Nana Akufo-Addo urged the media to recognise their constitutional mandate and to conduct their role professionally in accordance with Ghana Journalists Association Code of Ethics for media practitioners.

"Journalist must be fair, balance and truthful in their reportage; avoid sensationalism and declaring of electoral results, which is not their mandate...you must avoid the temptation of running ahead of the EC in declaring your own results," he said.

Nana Akufo-Addo commended the conduct of other presidential candidates and political parties during the electioneering campaign, but challenged them to instruct their supporters to exercise restraint in the last few days to the elections.

"The journey to the final declaration of results is definitely going to be long and stressful but we must encourage our supporters to behave...the blood of Ghanaians are precious and we must not spill any just to win power.

"We must also pledge our commitment to accept the outcome of the elections, gracefully congratulate the winner and accept defeat, and jubilate with moderation," the NPP presidential candidate stated.

He reiterated his call for peaceful election, stressing: "Ghana has come a long way democratically. Election 2008 offers all democratic stakeholders an opportunity to entrench our democratic credentials and confirm our leadership role in Africa."

He said: "After more than 30 years of political leadership in different capacity in the country am now on course to lead the NPP to victory in the presidential election on December 7th and move the nation forward."

The NPP presidential candidate said: "My vision is to create a modern society, by transforming the Ghanaian economy; deepening the democratic culture and leading Ghana to participate fully in the project of regional and continental unity.”

Nana Akufo-Addo said: "My presidency will be about encouraging Ghanaians to believe in themselves...this is an age of rediscovery. We need to reconnect with the courage and hope that made Ghana the first Black African country to achieve independence.

"We need to claim for ourselves a new passion and culture of excellence. Let us move forward with confidence that our potential lies within us and that it is bigger than the problems, which stifled our efforts in the past."



Source: GNA