Nana Akwasi Bosompra I, the paramount chief of the Goaso Traditional Area in the Ahafo region, has strongly criticized the Electoral Commission (EC) Chairperson, Jean Mensa, for the commission’s recent decision to limit the limited voter registration exercise to its district offices.
This move, according to Nana Akwasi Bosompra I, has the potential to disenfranchise a considerable number of Ghanaians who live in places remote from district offices.
He was also concerned that many eligible voters would not be able to travel from their villages to the EC’s district offices for registration.
“What is Jean Mensa doing, has she been to Ahafo before? Does she know the town that follows Esumira. Does she know the town after Kasapin, so is Jean Mensa saying that all these people, if they want to write their names they should have three people and travel to Goaso? Is she going to pay for their fare?
“She should be careful not to bring any confusion into this country because of a woman’s decision, I’m pleading with her she should change that rule and decentralise the process. Because a rich person can bus people to register and vote for him but that person is someone we may not even like.”
The EC Commission has announced the start of a restricted voter registration period from September 12, 2023, to October 2, 2023, for eligible Ghanaians who turned 18 after the 2020 registration period and other eligible voters.
However, the EC’s Chairperson, Jean Mensa, stated that the exercise will be held at all of the EC’s 268 district offices around the nation.
Godwin Edudzi Tamakloe, Director of Legal Affairs for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), said on Monday that the party’s Legal Department is under investigation.The Directorate will look into legal options to contest the Electoral Commission’s decision to host the next restricted voter registration at its district offices.
The NDC claims that if the EC is permitted to proceed with its proposals, the majority of new voters would be disenfranchised.
