Kwadwo Afari-Gyan (born 18 June 1945) is a
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...
ian
academic
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...
,
political scientist
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
and election administrator. He was Chairman of the
Electoral Commission of Ghana
The Electoral Commission of Ghana(EC) is the official body in Ghana responsible for all public elections. Made up of seven members, its independence is guaranteed by the 1992 Ghana constitution. The current commission was established by the Elec ...
from 1993 to 2015.
Early life and education
Afari-Gyan was born on 18 June 1945 at
Anyimon in the
Brong Ahafo Region of
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...
. He attended
Achimota School
Achimota School ( /ɑːtʃimoʊtɑː/ ), formerly Prince of Wales College and School at Achimota, later Achimota College, now nicknamed Motown, is a co-educational boarding school located at Achimota in Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana. The school w ...
and
Adisadel College for his
A Level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
and also graduated from the
University of Ghana
The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities.
The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...
in 1967 with a
BA degree in
Philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
. He went on to attain a
MA degree in African politics in 1969 from the same university. He also studied in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
where he was awarded a
Ph. D. in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
from the
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduate ...
in 1974.
Career
Afari-Gyan worked as a lecturer and a professor in Political Science at the University of Ghana. He has also lectured in the United States and
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
. He was a member of the Committee of Experts that drafted the Fourth Republican Constitution for Ghana.
In 1992, he was appointed deputy chairman of the Interim National Electoral Commission by the
Provisional National Defence Council
The Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) was the name of the Ghanaian government after the People's National Party's elected government was overthrown by Jerry Rawlings, the former head of the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council, in a coup ...
, which was ruling as a military
junta
Junta may refer to:
Government and military
* Junta (governing body) (from Spanish), the name of various historical and current governments and governing institutions, including civil ones
** Military junta, one form of junta, government led by ...
, with the hope of returning the country to civilian rule. His job was to ensure that the
November 1992 presidential election and the
December 1992 parliamentary elections were free and fair.
Jerry John Rawlings
Jerry John Rawlings (22 June 194712 November 2020) was a Ghanaian military officer and politician who led the country for a brief period in 1979, and then from 1981 to 2001. He led a military junta until 1992, and then served two terms as the de ...
, the chairman of the PNDC, who was also
Head of State
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
, stood and won the elections.
With the coming into force of the Fourth Republican Constitution, a new Electoral Commission was set up and Afari-Gyan became its first substantive chairman. He has successfully supervised all the elections held under this constitution so far. He has successfully chaired the conduct of presidential and parliamentary elections in 1992,
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
,
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
,
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
and
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
. In the last of these a number of unofficial institutions attempted to declare the results of these elections, with Afari-Gyan stating that these results could not be trusted.
The 2004 general elections were disputed in court by the opposition National Democratic Congress. But the case was lost on technicalities. Again, the 2012 presidential election between President John Dramani Mahama and Nana Akufo-Addo ended up in an 8-month election petition trial at the Supreme Court. The opposition leader lost the case in a 5:4 split decision, which held that the President was validly elected. But, the trial, which was live on television, exposed some fundamental weaknesses in Ghana's electoral process, triggering calls and moves towards comprehensive electoral reforms before the 2016 general elections. The ruling has been heavily criticised by jurists.
This is what one of the Supreme Court Justices, Justice Jones Dotse, had to say about Dr Afari Gyan:
"My observation is that, Dr. Afari Gyan appeared to have concentrated his oversight responsibility at the top notch of the election administration, thereby abdicating his supervisory role at the grassroots or bottom, where most of the activities critical to the conduct of elections are performed. In this instance, he even appeared not to be conversant with some of the basic procedural steps and rules that are performed by his so-called temporary staff. So far as I am concerned, Dr. Afari Gyan has cut a very poor figure of himself, and the much acclaimed competent election administrator both nationally and internationally has evaporated into thin air once his portfolio has come under the close scrutiny of the Courts."
In 1998, he became the Executive Secretary of the
Association of African Election Authorities The Association of African Election Authorities (AAEA) is a Regional Network of Election commission, Election Management Bodies] The organization is dedicated to the professionalization of election administration through information exchange and reg ...
. He was also member of a committee of experts to advice Nigeria on elections.
He retired from his position of Chairman of the Electoral Commission in June 2015.
Honours
He was awarded the
Order of the Star of Ghana
The Order of the Star of Ghana is the highest award given by the Government of Ghana to any individual who had helped the cause of the country in one way or the other. Recipients of this award are decorated at a state function, chaired by the Pr ...
, the highest national award by President
John Mahama
John Dramani Mahama (; born 29 November 1958) is a Ghanaian politician who served as President of Ghana from 24 July 2012 to 7 January 2017. He previously served as Vice President of Ghana from January 2009 to July 2012, and took office as presi ...
, on 1 July 2015.
Other activities
He has also worked in a large number of other African countries, and has written several books.
He was the "star witness" for the
Electoral Commission of Ghana
The Electoral Commission of Ghana(EC) is the official body in Ghana responsible for all public elections. Made up of seven members, its independence is guaranteed by the 1992 Ghana constitution. The current commission was established by the Elec ...
in an electoral petition filed by the
New Patriotic Party
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, colorcode = #132f7a
, founder =
, founded = 28 July 1992
, dissolved =
, leader = Nana Akufo-Addo
, chairman = Stephen Ayensu Ntim
Stephen Ntim elected NPP National Chairman on fifth attempt http://www.gna.org.gh/1.2152672 ...
after the 2012 general election.
Publications
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Afari-Gyan, Kwadwo
Living people
1945 births
University of Ghana alumni
University of Ghana faculty
University of California, Santa Barbara alumni
Recipients of the Order of the Star of Ghana