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NDC demands IPAC meeting with EC over voters registration exercise

By Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah
NDC NDC demands IPAC meeting with EC over voters registration exercise
MAY 19, 2015 LISTEN

The governing National Democratic Congress says it has not been consulted in the ongoing voter registration process by the Electoral Commission.

The party is therefore asking the Electoral Commission to, as quickly as possible, convene an Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting for a thorough discussion on the matter.

Political parties are incensed by the decision of the EC to go ahead with the registration process without informing them.

The ongoing registration exercise is to afford Ghanaians who turned 18 years after the last registration and those who are above 18 years but could not register, a chance to do so.

However, according to the NPP, the exercise is in breach of the regulations governing electoral processes as the Electoral Commission failed to consult major stakeholders.

Director of Elections of the party Martin Agyei Mensah Korsah said the Constitutional Instrument (CI) 7 regulation 2 (3) mandates the commission to officially inform political parties about the exercise.

The PNC, PPP, and CPP have all condemned the action of the Electoral Commission.

It is now the turn of the governing NDC.
Deputy General Secretary of the party, Koku Anyidoho in an interview with Joy FM said the EC must quickly convene an IPAC meeting to discuss the matter.

"EC cannot say IPAC is not a constitutional animal and can operate without us," he said.

While he admits that the EC can operate without the parties when it is organising district level elections - because those elections are non-partisan - he was quick to add that if the EC is registering people for the sake of taking part in the district elections it must inform the parties because the same voters register to be used for the district level elections is the same register to be used for the national elections.

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