The Vice Chair of the Constitutional and Legal Committee of Parliament has expressed disappointment with what he said is the sudden u-turn by the Minority over the proposed date for the 2016 election.

While still respecting the rights of the Minority to change their decision on the Constitutional Amendment Bill, Mr George Loh said nobody should be basking in joy over the rejection of the November 7 date.

Early on Parliament was the battle ground for debate and votes over a bill meant to change the date for voting from December 7 to November 7.

The House needed a total of 184 votes for the Constitution to be amended and to have the dates changed.

After a contest of wits, arguments and secret ballots, the House could only garner 125 votes in favour of the change, 59 votes less than what was required.

The New Patriotic Party in principle agreed to the change but said the Electoral Commission is not adequately prepared to organise elections one month earlier than it would have done.

The party would rather the proposed date comes into effect in the next election in 2020.

Speaking on the shooting down of the amendment bill, George Loh told Joy News' Evans Mensah the NPP, at an IPAC meeting agreed for the election day to be brought forward for a month to allow for a smooth election transition.

"When they came to the Committee the NPP said if it is November 7, they are prepared, if it is December 7, they are prepared. I don't see why suddenly there is a u-turn as though some people didn't agree and some people wanted to force the amendment. Nobody was forcing the amendment. It is something that we all thought will add to the process, last minute the Minority side decided to vote against it. It is their democratic right.

"....I think that is how we have to look at it. I don't think anybody should be basking in joy that we didn't get the date changed," he said.

But the Chairman of the campaign team of the New Patriotic Party Peter Mac Manu says democracy for that matter elections is a journey and decisions must be taken and implemented as quickly as possible.

Whilst admitting to the fact that the NPP agreed to a proposal for the change in date, he argued, that proposal was made in March 2014 at an IPAC meeting and if the EC was minded, it would have long taken steps to amend the law.

"We cannot wait four months into an election before making this amendment," he insisted.

He argued Kenya made a similar amendment but did that 10 months ago for an election to be held in 2017 and wondered why Ghana would wait four months before implementing its own laws.

He also cited the ECOWAS treaty on election governance which says no new law must be enacted in member countries  4 months to election. Ghana has ratified that treaty.

Mac Manu said in democracy the sovereignty rests with the people of Ghana and they have spoken clearly through their Members of Parliament that the 2016 elections be held on December 7 2016.