459,291 Voters registered
-As EC rejects NDC’s rigging claims
By Elvis DARKO, Accra
The Electoral Commission (EC) has successfully registered 459,291 first-time voters in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise.
The regional breakdown of registered includes: Ashanti (81,163), Greater Accra (62,932), Central (49,460), Eastern (43,962), Northern (40,119), Western (29,314), Volta (23,501), Bono (18,724), Upper East (17,635) and Bono East (17,012).
The rest are Western North (14,990), Upper West (13,975), Oti (13,350), North East (12,586), Savannah (10,495), and Ahafo (10,073).
The gender breakdown shows 53.05% female and 46.95% male registrants.
Daily figures
The daily registration figures are as follows; Day one: 13,670, Day two: 21,910, Day three: 38,233, Day four: 52,305, Day five: 52,571, Day six: 42,377 and Day seven: 44,651.
The rest are Day eight: 40,794, Day nine: 33,130, Day ten: 29,097 and Day eleven: 26,904.
EC Dismisses Election Rigging Allegations
Amid allegations by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) that the EC might rig the 2024 General Election, the Commission has reiterated its commitment to fair and transparent electoral processes.
Mr. Samuel Tettey, Deputy EC Chair in charge of Operations, addressed these concerns during a press conference in Accra, stating that the transparent nature of the EC’s processes—from voter registration to the collation and declaration of results—makes it impossible to influence election outcomes.
“Elections are won or lost at the polling station, not at the EC’s headquarters,” Mr. Tettey emphasized.
He urged political parties to train their agents well to observe the electoral process and ensure accurate result collation.
Fair recruitment process for election officials
Responding to concerns about the recruitment of Returning and Deputy Returning Officers, Mr. Tettey assured that the process was open, fair, and transparent.
He noted that 20,561 applications were received following advertisements in the dailies, and an in-house committee shortlisted the applicants.
All successful candidates have at least eight years of experience as Temporary Election Officials.
Additionally, Mr. Tettey confirmed that political parties were provided with the list of registration officials during Regional and District IPAC meetings well before the registration exercise began.
Registration challenges addressed
The EC acknowledged initial challenges in the first two days of the registration exercise but confirmed that these issues were resolved by the third day.
Clarification on SALL/Guan District voting issue
Mr. Tettey also addressed the disenfranchisement of residents in the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi, and Likpe (SALL) areas during the 2020 Parliamentary elections.
He explained that the Legislative Instrument creating the Guan District came into effect on November 9, 2020, the same day Parliament went on recess.
Consequently, the Constitutional Instrument creating the Guan Constituency could not be laid before Parliament and mature into law in time for the December 7, 2020, elections.
The EC’s ongoing efforts aim to ensure a comprehensive and transparent voter registration process as Ghana prepares for the upcoming 2024 General Election.
622,000 new voters targeted
The Commission aimed to register 622,000 new voters by the end of the operation.
Ghana Card or Ghana Passport
Eligible voters can use either the Ghana Card or the Ghana Passport to establish their identity as Ghanaians.
Vouching
In the absence of the two identification documents, applicants would be required to present two people who are already registered voters to vouch for their citizenship and age.
Minors warned to stay away
The EC has served notice that it will collaborate with law enforcement agencies to deal with minors who attempt to register.
