The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has denied being a party to any consultation or meeting where it is agreed the Ghana Card be the sole document for the impending limited voter registration exercise.
The Electoral Commission (EC) has claimed it has agreed with political parties and civil society organization to use the Ghana Card as the only source document.
According to the party, the Commission’s statement is absurd and unreasonable and indicated it will fully apprise the general public of the implications of the decision.
Chairman of the NDC, Mr. Ofosu Ampofo, in a statement noted under Article 42 of the 1992 Constitution, every Ghanaian of eighteen years and above and of sound mind is entitled to register as a voter for the purposes of elections.
This right to register and exercise one’s franchise, he said, is an inalienable right that should not be denied citizens who qualify to exercise same.
“Again, Article 45(e) of the Constitution enjoins the Electoral Commission to undertake programmes for the expansion of the registration of voters.”
”It is for this reason that the NDC cannot be a party to any decision that seeks to constrict access to the electoral roll or disenfranchise qualified citizens from joining the electoral roll.”
The NDC, he said, agrees with the venerable former chairman Dr. Afari Gyan that any attempt by the EC to use Ghana Card as the sole document for voter registration will lead to the disenfranchisement of millions of Ghanaians.
He stated the NDC is not oblivious of the challenges millions of Ghanaians are going through to obtain Ghana Cards with the recent pandemonium that characterized registration centres due to the unrealistic deadlines for SIM registration.
“It is worthy of note that according to data from the National Identification Authority (NIA), only 16,654,072 million Ghanaians out of a national population of about 31 million had registered for the Ghana card as at July 2022.”
“Of this number, only 13,316,612 million of them have been issued with their Ghana cards. It is obvious from this data, that there are many Ghanaians who have just turned 18 years or will turn 18 years by the next limited registration period who may not have a Ghana card. And therefore any decision that seeks to make the Ghana card the sole identification document for voter registration will disenfranchise many eligible voters.”
Mr. Ampofo cautioned that mistrust in the electoral process is a major risk to Ghana’s peace and security as issued by the National Security Ministry in Ghana’s National Security Strategy.
He noted that the suspicion of collusion between the ruling party and the Electoral Commission to rig elections for the ruling party continues to drive the situation towards dispute and potential violence.
“The strategy further urged the Electoral Commission to “identify the sources of public mistrust in its electioneering systems and processes and take necessary action or make recommendations for addressing them.”
“It is for this reason that we wish to caution the Electoral Commission to be circumspect in its actions and inactions since they have far reaching implications for the peace and security of the country.”
He warned the NDC will not sit aloof for the ruling NPP government to collude with the Electoral Commission to rig the 2024 elections and inflict more pain and hardships on the citizenry.
He urged agitated supporters to remain calm as the party take all legitimate and appropriate steps to ensure they are disenfranchised.