According to the EC, this will go a long way in curbing the underage voting phenomenon in the country.
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Ghana card will cure the underage voting menace – EC
The Electoral Commission (EC) has defended its stance to use only the Ghana card as the sole requirement for elections 2024.
Dr Bossman Asare
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Speaking on The Forum on Asaase Radio, the deputy chairman in charge of corporate services at the EC Dr Bossman Asare said there is no cause for alarm.
“In all this, when we start the registration, the party agents will be present. The mischief we’re trying to kill is having people fronting for people who are not 18 years and are not Ghanaians.”
“As we speak, the exercise hasn’t even begun but when it begins, we’re asking people to go for your Ghana Card, go to your district EC office and register,” he added.
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“What the commission is saying is that our exercise which is the continuous registration has no deadline. So when we start the process and you’re 18 and have your Ghana card, go and register. We know you don’t turn 18 before you get your Ghana Card so when you get your card and turn 18, you go and register,” Bossman said.
The proposal by the EC has elicited some reactions from civil society organisations and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, a former Chairperson of the Electoral Commission has warned against the decision to use the Ghana card as a sole form of identification for the 2024 elections.
Electoral Comissioner Jean Mensah and Bossman Asare
Pulse Ghana
In an interview with the Daily Graphic, Dr. Afari-Gyan said the move will disenfranchise a lot of Ghanaians.
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“Ghanaian citizens don’t lose their citizenship if they are 18 years or older but do not have the Ghana Card.
“So, the moot question is: why make the Ghana Card the only means of identification for purposes of establishing eligibility to register to vote,” he queried.
In July, the EC placed before Parliament a draft C.I titled: Public Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations, 2021, which is expected to regulate continuous voter registration.
Per the new C.I, the EC is seeking to make the Ghana Card the sole form of identification for eligible voters who want to get onto the electoral roll.
The C.I has been referred to the Subsidiary Legislation Committee of Parliament. By convention, the committee is chaired by a member of the Minority group.
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