Beatrice Annan, a Presidential staffer, has defended the Mahama government appointment of Emelia Afi Agbenyo as Deputy Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC).
According to Beatrice Annan, Emelia Afi Agbenyo’s involvement in political campaigns does not necessarily indicate partisan allegiance or an inability to discharge her duties impartially.
Speaking on Citi FM on Monday, October 12, 2026, Annan maintained that Agbenyo had never been a card-bearing member of the NDC and had not exhibited any conduct suggesting that she would be biased in the execution of her responsibilities at the EC.
“She has not done anything to demonstrate any potential bias or imminent bias,” she said.
Beatrice Annan also defended the process leading to Agbenyo’s appointment, insisting that the presidency followed the constitutionally prescribed procedure.
She further explained that the nominees were submitted to the Council of State more than a month before their swearing-in, allowing the council to consult relevant stakeholders before the appointments were finalised.
Emelia Afi Agbenyo’s appointment, alongside that of Dr Joseph Kweku Asamoah as another Deputy Chairperson, has attracted criticism from the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), which has questioned her suitability for the position.
The NPP’s concerns centre on Agbenyo’s reported involvement in the National Democratic Congress (NDC)’s campaign activities and her role as a spokesperson for the party’s manifesto committee on governance.
Emelia Afi Agbenyo’s participation in the NDC’s 2020 and 2024 election campaigns has also been defended as part of efforts to promote women’s representation in leadership rather than evidence of formal membership of the governing party.
Supporters have further cited her reported criticism of the NDC in 2016 over governance concerns and her warning ahead of the 2024 elections that gender advocates could campaign against the party if it failed to retain a female running mate.
They argue that these positions reflect her engagement with political parties on specific policy and gender-related issues rather than unconditional partisan loyalty.
Also, Rashid Tanko Computer, the Deputy Director of Elections and IT of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has criticised the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Director of Communications, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, over his concerns about the appointment of Emelia Afi Agbenyo as Deputy Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC).
Speaking on TV3’s Daily Brief, Rashid questioned Aboagye’s criticism, citing the appointment of Prof. Appiahene, whom he said previously served as the NPP’s Director of Elections in the Bono East Region before becoming an EC commissioner.
“I am surprised my brother Dennis is speaking this way. Is Dennis Miracles Aboagye coming from Afghanistan or Somalia? Is he not a Ghanaian? Does he not know that one of the current commissioners, appointed by Akufo-Addo, Prof. Appiahene, was a Director of Elections for the NPP in the Bono East Region?” he asked.
Rashid further stated that when Prof. Appiahene was appointed during the Akufo-Addo administration, the NDC wrote to the Council of State to express its opposition to the appointment.
According to him, the party argued that someone who had served as the NPP’s Director of Elections should not be appointed an Electoral Commission commissioner. The Council of State wrote back to the NDC that, so long as he is qualified to be appointed and the president’s prerogative to appoint, they, the Council of State, have not seen anything wrong with it. Which party he was coming from is not material”.
@ghnow_ Friends and colleagues of Kumawood actress Vivian Jill Lawrence gather to support her as she mourns the loss of her elder sister, Auntie Mabel. 🕊️💔 #GHNow #VivianJill #AuntieMabel #fyp ♬ original sound – Wasako Lyrics
@ghnow_ Friends and colleagues of Kumawood actress Vivian Jill Lawrence gather to support her as she mourns the loss of her elder sister, Auntie Mabel. 🕊️💔 #GHNow #VivianJill #AuntieMabel #fyp ♬ original sound – Wasako Lyrics
