The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) branch in Ashaiman in the Greater Accra Region, has vowed to cause the arrest of some key National Democratic Congress (NDC) officials who threatened to beat up National Identification Authority officials.
The NDC executives led by their chairman, Shadad Umar Jallo, last week threatened to disrupt the registration process in Ashaiman unless the registration requirements are updated.
Speaking to Citi News however, the Ashaiman NPP Communications Director, Joseph Ottuin, said they will ensure that the right things are done.
“We don’t want lawlessness to take its course in Ashaiman. We don’t want people who are lawless. We see that move by the NDC chairman as a useless move. Who is he fighting for? Is he fighting for himself, for Ghanaians or non-Ghanaians?”
“If you are a Ghanaian what is your fear? He himself should come out with his passport or birth certificate and tell us where he is coming from. If he is a Ghanaian then he doesn’t have any problem. Then we are assuring him that if he dares organizes people illegally to come and disrupt the exercise in Ashaiman, we will make sure he is arrested. It’s an exercise that all Ghanaians are yearning for and we won’t sit down for this exercise to be disrupted by any hoodlum,” he added.
We’ll disrupt Ghana card registration – Ashaiman NDC Chair
Shaddad Umar Jallo had earlier threatened to organize NDC members to disrupt the national ID card exercise in the area.
Speaking at a press conference, Mr. Jallo said they are against the process of registration because of the NIA’s insistence that the voter’s ID card, will not be accepted as a form of identification for the issuance of the National ID card.
“I have a problem with the criteria for NIA registration. The NPP government wants to tie people’s hands in order for them not to get the access to the card, and I will not allow that to happen in Ashaiman. If they joke, we are going to chase the [NIA] officials out. We will not allow the registration in Ashaiman,” he threatened.
The NDC Minority in Parliament has been leading the campaign against the NIA’s process for the registration.
They had threatened to file processes at the Supreme Court for an interpretation on whether or not voters’ ID card could be used as proof of nationality for the registration and issuance of the Ghana card.
The Minority said the NIA’s decision to exclude holders of the voters’ ID from the registration was premised on a wrongful interpretation of the landmark 2016 judgment in the Abu Ramadan vs Electoral Commission case.
Former President had also expressed similar concerns, saying the NDC will resist the identification criteria.
The Public Relations Officer of the NIA, Francis Palmdeti, last week told Citi News that the NIA was strictly following the law governing its activities.
“NIA is just implementing the law, and for us not implement the law in the manner it has been passed will be a breach of the law. We are not willing to breach the law passed by our august house. I am of the view that, just like any other citizen of this country, who may have an issue with the legislation, they [Minority], are entitled to exercise their right in the court. If that is the route the minority wants to go, we as an institution do not have an objection to that,” he said.
Although the National Identification Authority (NIA), has clarified its identification scope for the Ghana card registration, saying persons without passports and birth certificates could get relatives who will stand in as guarantors during the registration process, the Minority says it is not convinced.
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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citinewsroom.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin
