The Electoral Commission (EC) has commenced the forum to hear the arguments by the various political parties and Civil Society Organisations on the need for a new voters’ register.
The forum will see representatives of major political parties make presentations before a five member panel stating their support or otherwise for the decision to obtain a new voters’ register prior to the 2016 general elections.
[contextly_sidebar id=”yHO8shK4O4skT4Xi0GG33YCM280qlPOf”]The New Patriotic Party has been leading the campaign for a new voters’ register.
They claimed that the current register is bloated and lacks credibility.
The NPP’s call has also been supported by pro-opposition group, Let My Vote Count Alliance but the NDC maintains the supposed evidence put forward by the opposition NPP are unfounded.
Meanwhile the EC has tasked an independent IT expert to look into the alleged cases of bloated register, and has subsequently tasked a five member panel to consider the proposals and offer recommendations.
The panel includes:
1.His Lordship Professor V.C.R.A.C. Crabbe, Co-Chair of the Coalition for Domestic Election Observers, (CODEO), former Justice of the Supreme Court of Ghana, former Professor of Law, and former Electoral Commissioner of Ghana;
2.Most Reverend Professor Emmanuel Asante, former Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Ghana and Chairman of the National Peace Council;
3.Grace Bediako, a former Government Statistician and former member of the National Development Planning Commission;
4.Nii Narku Quaynor, a renowned computer scientist, Chairman of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) Board of Directors, and President of the Internet Society of Ghana; and
5. Maulvi Bin Salih, Ameer of the Ahmadiyya Mission of Ghana.
Objectivity of panel:
In a related development, the NPP has also questioned the objectivity of some members of the panel whom they claim have declared their opposition to preparing a new voters’ register.
Gabby Otchere Darko had initially suggested that the NPP would boycott the forum but Director of Public Affairs of the EC, Christian Owusu Parry told Citi News in an interview that the EC is yet to receive any notification to that effect.
The party’s director of elections, Martin Agyei Mensah Korsah has however stated that the party will be attending the forum.
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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citifmonline.com/Ghana