This is due to the adverse effects of Covid-19, coupled with the various travel restrictions put in place by many countries, which prevented delegates from travelling to Ghana for the 2020 Executive Council elections.
A statement from the church said that influenced the need for an online voting system that was secure, reliable and assured vote integrity and confidentiality.
“This system enabled The Church of Pentecost to organise its maiden electronic voting to elect members of its Executive Council,” the statement said.
The system
The online selection software the church deployed, Synergy eVote, was developed by AO Holdings Limited, which has its head office located at the Accra Digital Centre.
eVote
The Synergy eVote online voting system eliminates the hectic manual voting process.
Out of the 1,237 registered voters from 106 countries, a total of 1,194 votes were cast – 967 votes cast by councilors in Ghana and 227 by external councilors.
The entire election process lasted for an hour, with more than 1,000 votes being cast in less than 15 minutes.
Elected officials
The Hohoe Area Head, Apostle Yaw Adjei Kwarteng; the Koforidua Area Head, Apostle Samuel Osei Asante, and the Tamale Area Head, Apostle Isaac Kotei Djani, were all re-elected to serve a second term on the Executive Council.
Apostles Sylvester Arhin (Assin Foso Area Head), Dr Dela Quampah (Head of Department, School of Theology, Leadership and Missions) and Mike Etrue (Kaneshie Area Head) were also elected to replace members of the council who had completed their terms.
The India National Head, Apostle James Raj, was also elected onto the Council as the Member Representative for Nations Outside Africa.
Information systems
AO Holdings specialises in management information systems and information technology enabled services for corporate organisations, small and medium enterprises, civil society organisations, development partners and government agencies.
Synergy eVote is a dynamic and seamless online election and survey management system for civil society organisations, churches, political parties, groups and associations in Ghana and beyond. AO Holdings Synergy eVote enables registered voters to go through a verification process and vote easily from anywhere using their computer, tablet or smart phone.
Microsoft partnership
A Microsoft Business Solutions partner in Ghana, AO Holdings is committed to helping sustain and improve the productivity of entities in the country amid COVID-19.
The company, in partnership with Microsoft, is offering Microsoft Office 365 collaboration, communication and remote working at no cost to all interested entities for a period of six months.