Pressure group Let My Vote Count Alliance (LMVCA) has welcomed the decision of the Electoral Commission to compile a new voters’ register for the 2020 General Elections.
The Alliance, in a press statement, however, asked some seven (7) questions it believes the Electoral Commission must answer to bring clarity on the matter ahead of the 2020 general elections.
The questions are:
- Will the new Voter Register comes with the requisite equipment for registration, verification and if necessary, transmission of results electronically?
- Will the Registration process include the use of enhanced technological features, including eyeball identification and facial recognition?
- Will the new registration process and Voter Register address the issue of “over-bloating” in the existing Voter Register?
- Will the new Voter Register curb the high incidence of the use of manual verification, which was recorded, during the referenda as observed by the Let My Vote Count Alliance (LMVCA) Observer Team, deployed at various voting centres?
- Will the new registration process and Voter Register to address the issue of the registration of Minors and underage voters in the existing Voter Register?
- Will the new registration process and Voter Register address the issue of deceased voters in the existing Voter Register?
- Will the new registration process and Voter Register address the issue of foreigners registered in the existing register?
LMVCA said the new voters’ register should bring more transparency and fairness to future elections.
The group said that it was confident that with “the new technological advancement in areas such as cloud computing and secured encrypted systems available, a new voters register should bring more transparency and fairness to future elections.”
“If the Electoral Commission and the principal stakeholders, will affirmatively answer the above questions, including other anticipated electoral anomalies associated with the above problems with the existing Register, the Let My Vote Count Alliance (LMVCA) and all democracy-loving Ghanaians, in the interest of consolidating our democratic gains, we are ready to throw their weight behind the Electoral Commission(EC) and all active stakeholders to make this proposed compilation of a new voters register a reality,” the statement signed by the Director of Operations, John Hall Acquah said.
Electoral Commission last week announced its decision to compile a new voters’ register after an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting.
The EC said it made the decision in consultation with the various political parties. It said the new register will include enhancing features, making it worthy of Ghana’s democracy.
Varied views have been expressed on the matter with some persons including Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo who said the process is needless and will deepen mistrust between the Commission and opposition parties.
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By: Jonas Nyabor | citinewsroom.com | Ghana
