Here are four times Charlotte Osei came under the spotlight before, during and after her tenure as EC Boss.
The Electoral Commission (EC) is currently without a chairperson, following the sacking of Charlotte Osei, who used to occupy that position.
The embattled EC boss was relieved of her duties on Thursday evening following a directive from President Akufo-Addo.
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Madam Charlotte Osei was sacked together with her two deputies, Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwah.
Barely three hours after her sack was confirmed, the name Charlotte Osei rose to second on the Twitter trends.
However, this is not the first time that the lawyer has stolen the headlines – be it for the good or wrong reasons.
Below, we take a look at four previous times that Charlotte Osei made massive headlines in the country:
4. When she was appointed EC Boss
Charlotte Osei was well-known as Chairperson for the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), but the first time she truly made the headlines was when she was appointed as Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC).
The 49-year-old legal practitioner became Ghana’s first female EC boss since Independence after succeeding the retired Kwadwo Afari-Gyan.
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Having been appointed to the post by then-president John Mahama, Madam Osei’s name came into the spotlight and she never looked back, until, of course, her sacking.
3. During mass disqualification of parties in 2016 elections
Charlotte Osei was again massively in the news after the EC, under her tenure, disqualified 13 presidential aspirants from contesting in the 2016 elections.
In a decision that shocked many, Hassan Ayariga’s All People’s Congress (APC), the People’s National Convention’s (PNC) Dr. Edward Mahama, the Progressive People’s Party’s (PPP) Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, and other aspirants were all disqualified for failing to meet the necessary electoral requirements.
As expected, she came under intense criticism from the leaders of the disqualified parties, who took their protests from one media house to another. In the end, it was Charlotte Osei’s name that was everywhere.
2. Fallout with her two deputies
Another issue that brought Charlotte Osei’s name under the spotlight was her public fallout with the EC’s two deputy chairpersons.
The embattled EC boss fell out with Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwaa, with the trio trading accusations and counter-accusations at each other over some disagreement with contracts.
Madam Osei’s two deputies accused her of fraud, financial malfeasance as well as abuse of office, which ultimately led to a committee being set up to investigate the matter. Although she normally spoke to the media through her spokesperson, her two deputies were also on almost every platform with their own concerns. Thir fallout eventually created a buzz on social media.
1. When she was awarded by the US
Charlotte Osei once again stole the headlines after she received an award from the United States (US) for her exploits during the 2016 elections.
The embattled EC boss was honoured with the United States Department of State's Women of Courage Award for 2017. The award was given to her for overseeing a successful transition of power from the ND to the NPP during the 016 elections.
She was subsequently described as a woman who “epitomizes the phrase, woman of courage” by US Ambassador to Ghana, Robert P. Jackson.