Stop EC's New Register; So Many Ghanaians Will Be Disenfranchised – Afrikania Mission To Govt

A traditional religious organisation, Afrikania Mission, has joined the growing number of calls asking the Electoral Commission (EC) to reconsider its decision to compile a new register for the December 2020 election.

The group argues that “the time to the election is too short to guarantee the peaceful and accurate process of new registration.”

It also indicated that so many Ghanaians will be disenfranchised, given that they “did not get the chance to register for the NIA card due to the rushing way the registration was done.”

It, therefore, appealed to the government to “exercise its authority by stopping the Electoral Commission from compiling a new voter register.”

“Anything that will disturb the peace that we are all enjoying in Ghana, will also affect Afrikana Mission as well since we all in Ghana. Experience has thought us that there is a type of action that create tensions and even civil wars in so many parts of the world,” the group added.

Two civil society groups; the Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA) and IMANI Africa have also petitioned the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II to call on the EC to rescind its decision to compile a new electoral roll for the 2020 general elections.

The Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, also unsuccessfully moved for the rejection of the EC's move to change forms of identification in Parliament.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is currently battling the EC on the exclusion of the old voters' ID.

The EC presented the Public Election (Amendment) Regulation, 2020 (C.I. 126) to Parliament to amend C.I. 91 in order to change the current identification requirements.

On June 9, Parliament subsequently voted to allow the EC to use the Ghana Card and Passports as the only forms of identification for persons registering to vote after relevant Constitutional Instrument had matured.

The party has argued that this amendment will lead to many Ghanaians being disenfranchised.

The opposition party's case will be settled on June 23 ahead of the compilation of the register on June 30.

---citinewsroom