By Prince Ahenkorah
Two of the Electoral Commission’s three most senior officials are leaving their posts within weeks of each other, triggering a leadership transition that could reshape Ghana’s election management body in time for the next electoral cycle.
But their departures, announced by government spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu on June 15, 2026, carry a subtext that official statements have conspicuously avoided: both men were repeatedly accused of political partisanship and professional misconduct, allegations that dogged their entire tenure.
Dr. Bossman Asare, Deputy Chairperson in charge of Corporate Affairs, formally resigned effective July 31, citing a desire to return to academia. His counterpart, Samuel Tettey, Deputy Chairperson for Operations, has retired.
Between them, they oversaw two of the EC’s three core functions operations and corporate services while Chairperson Jean Mensa continues in office.
What the government’s press release did not say is that both men survived removal petitions filed under Article 146 of the Constitution, which accused them of “cronyism, abuse of office and gross incompetence”.
Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie found no prima facie case in February 2026, effectively sparing them. But the petitions left scars. The BBC reported that seven separate petitions had been filed against Jean Mensa, Bossman Asare and Samuel Tettey, citing “electoral mismanagement” and misconduct.
For both men, the perception of political bias was the hardest stain to remove. Long before they were appointed in 2018 and 2019 respectively, their names were already linked to the New Patriotic Party (NPP). During the 2024 election cycle, those links became a daily weapon for the opposition.
Alex Segbefia, former Deputy Chief of Staff and Health Minister, accused the EC of being “filled with NPP apparatchiks”. He specifically named Asare: “We have all the evidence that you are NPP and you are now a referee”.
The evidence, according to a Today publication, included Asare’s role as a patron of TESCON, the NPP’s tertiary student wing, during his university days. Samuel Tettey, meanwhile, was repeatedly accused of overseeing suspicious collation exercises and presiding over disputed constituency results.
Asare’s trajectory from NPP youth organiser to deputy commissioner always troubled civil society watchdogs. But it was his public statements during the 2024 elections that turned whispers into outrage. Kofi Iddi Adams, the NDC MP for Buem, cited a comment in which Asare allegedly described the NDC as “an existential threat to Ghana’s democracy”. A referee, critics argued, should not speak like a player.
Asare also faced accusations of personally intervening in constituency-level appointments, allegedly stacking polling stations with known NPP delegates in the Juaboso constituency. He denied the claim, daring critics to produce evidence.
In a final twist, Asare survived yet another removal petition in November 2025 filed by an EC database administrator who alleged 12 counts of misbehaviour including cronyism and abuse of office. The Chief Justice dismissed that too.
Unlike Asare, Tettey kept his head down and his statements brief. But his portfolio Operations meant he was at the centre of every disputed result. During the 2024 elections, he was accused of presiding over irregular collation exercises, including a clandestine session at a police training centre in Tesano that the NDC alleged was designed to “steal seats”. The NDC’s legal director secured an injunction to stop that exercise.
Tettey’s standard reply to accusations of rigging was to call them “misguided and unnecessary”. He also faced questions over a viral video showing EC-branded bags allegedly containing dollars, which he insisted contained only ballot papers. The controversy, like many others, was never fully resolved.
The government has confirmed that a nominee to replace Tettey has already been submitted to the Council of State, with a separate process to follow for Asare’s successor. But insiders suggest these may not be the last exits from the Jean Mensa-led Commission.
The oral commission a catchy reference to the NDC’s pre-election promise to “listen” to complaints against state institutions has been quietly collecting dossiers on senior EC officials. Chairman Wontumi’s galamsey trial may dominate headlines, but the EC’s house cleaning is proceeding in parallel. A few more resignations, sources hint, could be on the cards.
For President Mahama, who is barred by the Constitution from a third term and has told NDC elders he will not contest again, the EC transition offers a chance to reset an institution widely seen as captured by the previous administration. The new appointees, yet to be named, will be watched closely for signs of impartiality a quality that eluded their predecessors.
Asare’s departure to the University of Ghana is, officially, a return to teaching. Unofficially, it is the quiet end of a controversial public career.
Tettey’s retirement similarly closes a chapter marked by allegations that never quite became convictions. Whether the next chapter reads differently depends entirely on who President Mahama appoints next.