The Ashaiman Constituency Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Shaddad Umar Jallo, has threatened to organize party officials and members to disrupt an upcoming Ghana card registration exercise in the area.
Speaking at a press conference in Ashaiman, 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 Ghana Card.
The NIA has explained that the law governing its activities only allows the use of passports and birth certificates for identification, whereas those without any of the two, would only be registered through witnesses.
Mr. Shaddad Umar Jallo vowed to chase out NIA officials during the registration, if the processes are not reviewed to favour persons without birth certificates and passports.
[contextly_sidebar id=”vFwjsRFseVAVmoUqhEngIRliXD7zgsXR”]“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.
On Wednesday, the Minority caucus in Parliament threatened to file processes at the Supreme Court for 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.
But speaking to Citi News, the Public Relations Officer of the NIA, Francis Palmdeti, said 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: Marian Ansah/citinewsroom.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah
