Ghanaians vote for new president
December 29, 2008 00:00:00
People in Ghana have begun voting in the presidential run-off after the December 7 election failed to produce an outright winner, reports agencies.
Nana Akufo-Addo of the governing party is facing John Atta Mills of the opposition in the battle to succeed President John Kufuor.
Mr Addo defeated his rival by a slender margin in the first round but not by enough to avoid the run-off.
The two candidates are closely matched and the campaign has been tense with electioneering incessant, the BBC's Will Ross reports from the Ghanaian capital Accra.
Ghana has held successful elections before and has witnessed a peaceful transfer of power from one leader to another.
However, there is a great deal of bad blood and mistrust between the two main political parties, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) of Mr Atta Mills, our correspondent says.
In order for this election to pass off smoothly, he adds, it is vital that it is seen as free and fair - otherwise Ghana risks losing its reputation for democracy and peaceful elections.
The rival sides accused each other on the eve of polls of seeking to rig the ballot through intimidation and fraud.
Mr Atta Mills told reporters that his party had in recent days unearthed "startling revelations and confessions [about poll fraud]".
"There are certain developments since 7 December, which if not checked could distract from the peace and stability that we all want and could also affect the electoral process," he said.
He said he had received disturbing reports of "macho men" being hired "to cause mayhem at polling stations".
Mr Akufo-Addo's party accused the opposition of having embarked on a "disturbing... intimidation scheme".