Over 760,000 Voters To Be Disenfranchised In Bono, Ahafo And Bono East Regions— YOFAG Reveals

Youth for Accountable Governance (YOFAG) is asking residents in the Bono, Ahafo and the Bono East Regions to resist attempts by the Electoral Commission (EC) to disenfranchise eligible voters in the next general elections.

According to YOFAG, they are saddened by the report of the Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA) on how the collaboration between EC boss Jean Mensa and the National Identification Authority (NIA) is leading the country into danger.

ASEPA and several bodies have raised concerns over the exclusion of the National ID card from the list of requirements for the upcoming voter registration exercise.

Making reference to the CI 126 laid before Parliament which will end up giving the EC the chance to exclude the National ID, YOFAG has lamented over how it will disenfranchise over 760,000 voters in the Bono, Ahafo and the Bono East Regions.

YOFAG has therefore charged residents in the Regions to rise and resist the move by the Electoral Commission.

“This is the dangerous agenda the Electoral commission intends to implement aimed at disenfranchising the people in the Bono, Ahafo and the Bono East Regions.

“YOFAG, therefore, call on all eligible voters in these regions to rise and defend their constitutional rights before it's too late to repair”, a statement from YOFAG has said.

Read the full statement below:

JEAN MENSAH SET TO DISENFRANCHISE 767,344 ELIGIBLE VOTERS IN BONO, AHAFO AND BONO EAST.... YOFAG

Youth For Accountable Governance is saddened by the report of ASEPA on how the marriage between Jean Mensah and the NIA are leading the country into danger.

-The 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana is the supreme law of the land under which other subsidiary legislations derive their powers. So, any subsidiary legislation or law which contravenes any standing provision or article of the 1992 is ultra vires and must be thrown away.

-Chapter 3 of the 1992 constitution unambiguously spells out who is qualified to be a citizen of Ghana. So, any subsidiary law or legislation like the C.I 126 as laid before the Parliament of Ghana by the Jean Mensah’s Electoral Commission which seeks to redefine citizenship and the right of Ghanaian taxpayers to vote, is in contravention of the 1992.

-The CI 126 as laid before Parliament is proposing amendments of regulation 1 of C.I 91. This is the proposal:

1. The public elections (registration of voters) regulations, 2016 (C.I 91) is amended in regulation 1.

a) by the substitution for sub-regulation (3) of;

(3) a person who applies for registration as a voter SHALL provide as evidence of identification one of the following:

a) a passport

b) a national identification card issued by the NIA.

-As per this proposed amendment to the C.I 91, a traveling passport or the NIA card are the only identification materials that can serve as evidence or show of citizenship. And only the two can qualify anybody to register as a voter.

-Per this, the three regions (Bono, Bono East and Ahafo) will have as much as 767,344 eligible voters deliberately disenfranchised by the NIA and the EC.

-The Electoral Commission of Ghana did a limited voter register in 2019 for the District Assembly Elections. A total of One million, four hundred and fifty eight thousand, four hundred and fifty seven (1,480,460) voters were captured in the final electoral register for the three regions. The breakdowns are:

Bono NIA registered 294,483 15+ and have issued 73,244 cards out.

In Bono East, they have registered 277,501 15+ and issued 76,562 cards.

In Ahafo, 141,206 15+ have registered with 29,625 cards issued.

This means NIA has issued 179,431 cards to the three regions out of the total 713,190 people that have registered. It is important to state that, in all NIA estimated to register 1,811,160 15+ in the three regions

-It is worthy to note that the NIA registration in these three regions was done simultaneously with limited registration materials, faulty registration machines and within a very limited time. Even the promise made to the people that a mob up exercise will be done to enroll those who were not able to register, remains a scam. Even the promise made by the NIA that permanent registration offices will be designated in all Districts in these regions by March of 2020 has not been done.

This is the dangerous agenda the Electoral commission intends to implement to disenfranchise the people in the Bono, Ahafo and the Bono East Regions.

YOFAG therefore call on all eligible voters in these regions to rise and defend their constitutional rights before it's too late to repair.