Afenyo Markin petitions EC to extend re-registration period

New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for the Efutu Constituency in the Central Region, Alex Afenyo Markin, has petitioned the Electoral Commission (EC), to extend the window of re-registration for NHIS card registrants by 10 days.

The MP lamented that the exercise in his constituency has been fraught with power and logistical challenges which have prevented the EC from capturing as many names as possible.

Addressing the media today [Wednesday], Afenyo Markin confirmed that “the petition as drafted and signed by my good self at 8 pm yesterday [Tuesday], and the same was delivered this morning [Wednesday] and received by one John Okine at the EC's office.”

He explained that his constituency was in a unique position and thousands in his constituency stood the risk of being disenfranchised if the EC did not extend the exercise.

“…we have an exceptional situation in Winneba having 5,269 [deleted registrants]. It is not to be treated as constituency where they have 300, 100, 500 or even 1,000.”

Mr. Afenyo Markin also noted that, such turn of events would amount to a breach of the constitutional rights of his constituents.

“For instance, yesterday [Tuesday], we had over 500 people there but they could only register 203 because of network challenges and rains. And as at close of work, over 100 people had filled their forms but could not take their pictures.”

He further expressed the hope that the EC would “respond positively” to his petition.

More concerns over re-registration 
Alex Afenyo Markin’s petition joins the the growing concerns that a majority of the people deleted from the voters’ register, following the Supreme Court’s order, would be disenfranchised.

The EC as at yesterday [Tuesday], revealed that only 14,801 persons of the 56,000, whose names were deleted from the voters' register, have re-registered in the ongoing voters' register exhibition exercise.

The Ashanti region NPP want the re-registration to run concurrently with the exhibition

Ashanti NPP calls for extension
On Tuesday, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti Region, raised similar concerns with the trend, and called on the EC to extend the period of re-registration .

The NPP blamed this on the perceived poor publicity of the re-registration on the EC’s part, and it wants the re-registration to run concurrently with the 21 day exhibition exercise.

According to them, “the EC never came out to give education on the time frame because when they announced that they were going to do the exhibition, they said 21 days.”

“A lot of people thought that even if you were going to re-register, it is going to be within the 21 days therefore a lot of people have slowed down in even going to do the registration, meanwhile they are doing it to for 10-days, and this is the eighth day.”

EC’s fears people could be disenfranchised

The Head of Communications at the EC, Eric Dzakpasu, has also publicly expressed fears that most of the deleted registrants could be disenfranchised if the situation does not improve.

As at the close of work yesterday [Monday], out of the 56,762 names deleted, only 14,801 had re-registered,” Mr. Dzakpasu revealed to Citi News.

He lamented that, “the people are not coming. We are expecting them to come in their numbers so that we can get most of them registered so that they can vote, but they are not coming as we expect them to come.”

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana