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•Confusion, suspicion mount over delayed results
Hackers yesterday targeted the website of Ghana’s electoral commission as votes were counted after tightly contested elections.
The commission said the website was up again, and an attempt to put up “fake results” failed.
In a tweet, it urged people to ignore the “fake results” circulating on social media.
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Also yesterday, tension, confusion and suspicion greeted the exercise, as the umpire, Electoral Commission (EC), was silent over the outcome. Results were yet to be officially announced at the time of filing this report. However, about 80 per cent of the results had been declared from the 29,000 polling booths nationwide.
The development contradicts the smooth election environment that has been prevailing in the country since return of democratic dispensation in 1992.
Expectedly, the suspense created extreme tension in the country yesterday as security was beefed up to curtail untoward incidents although the exercise had been peaceful except pockets of misunderstanding in a few places.
However, the Ghanaian media had since midnight Wednesday been announcing the results declared by returning officers from most of the polling booths which put Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo ahead of the incumbent, John Dramani Mahama, hours after voting, but the tallies must be officially certified by the electoral body.
The commission’s delay in announcing the results yesterday forced Akuffo-Addo, the candidate of the largest opposition party, New Patriotic Party (NPP) to address a press conference where he claimed victory.
