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Information available to the New Statesman indicates that the Head of the Electoral Commission, Dr Kwadwo Afari Gyan, is resisting serious arm-twisting overtures from the quarters of government over the creation of new constituencies in the run up to the 2012 general elections. Sources at the Electoral Commission told the paper yesterday that there is tremendous amount of pressure being piled on Dr Afari Gyan to ensure that the proposed creation of new constituencies is commensurate with the number of newly created districts announced last week. On Saturday, Dr Afari Gyan met with the district and regional heads of the Electoral Commission where he outlined proposals and plans regarding the creation of new constituencies for the 2012 elections. Dr Afari Gyan during that same meeting made it emphatically clear that he would not allow government to bulldoze him into changing the EC�s plan of creating not more than 20 new constituencies, as opposed to government�s wish of creating at least 40 new constituencies based on the 42 newly created districts. This statement of intent by the EC boss received widespread approval from the regional and district EC bosses gathered. This flagrant disregard of the wishes of government resulted in Dr Afari Gyan being summoned to a meeting yesterday at the castle where government was said to have pressed home the need for the EC boss to kowtow to its desire of increasing the number of constituencies. The EC boss was not ready to budge on government�s request, sources at the meeting told the paper. It is recalled that Dr Afari Gyan, last Tuesday, in an interview on on Multi TV said the EC intends to add 20 new constituencies to the existing 230 ahead of the 2012 polls but it was awaiting the final figures from the 2010 census as well as the number of new districts to be created by government. Concerns have also been raised as to the basis of government�s decision to create new districts when figures from the population and housing census have not been released by the Ghana Statistical Service, a breach of Article 47 of the 192 constitution. The paltry sum of GH�40 million allocated for the 42 newly created districts has also been described as a joke by analysts who say this move by government is one designed for an ulterior motive. A majority of the districts that have been created also fall within NDC strongholds with a majority of the districts in the Volta and Northern regions, a move described as gerrymandering with the intention of ensuring a favourable result for the NDC at the 2012 polls.