Voter registration in the country at any time comes with its problems and one wonders when such recurring and emerging problems would cease.
Yesterday seven political parties without representation in Parliament called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to increase the number of centres for the limited voter registration exercise scheduled for September 12 to October 2, 2023.
Their contention is that the 268 EC district offices earmarked for the exercise are not enough and so would make eligible registrants and their guarantors to travel long distances at some cost and risk to get to the district offices.
Represented by their respective General Secretaries at a press conference in Accra, the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), the Convention People’s Party (CPP), the People’s National Convention (PNC); All People’s Congress (APC), the National Democratic Party (NDP) and the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP) reminded the EC that in 2019, it used 1,500 centres and so if nothing at all, the same number should be used.
The parties have the fears that the current arrangement can disenfranchise eligible voters.
It must be noted that the exercise is for those who have now attained the eligible voter age of 18 years and those who had qualified earlier, but could not register during the previous exercise.
These people must prove their citizenship with the Ghana Card or Ghanaian passport but anyone without either of them must have two guarantors to prove their age and citizenship.
It is public knowledge that acquisition of both Ghana Card and the passport has issues that have denied some citizens possession of these documents.
This is to say that definitely there would be the need for guarantors and if those who need the guarantors have to travel to the registration centres, who bears the cost?
We can conjecture that most of the people going to participate in the exercise would be youngsters who do not have jobs and little amounts are big in their estimation.
Therefore, those who would not get support from anyone can decide not to register, which situation can be deemed as disenfranchisement.
As for the risk in travelling, we would beg to differ because the risk associated with moving from one place to another, however the distance and the purpose, is always risky.
However, we think the parties have a point that the EC must consider.
The EC must not trivialise the concerns raised by the parties, for elsewhere issues bordering on such concerns raised can lead to violence and its attendant injuries and even deaths.
Looking at the fact that everything related to elections in Ghana raises issues, we appeal to the EC to sit with the seven parties and come to a consensus.
Creating more voter registration centres will bring more cost and some inconvenience, considering the number of days left for the commencement of the limited voter registration on September 12.
However, if that will avert some crisis, it is better for it to be done for the state to bear that cost to preserve the peace in the country.
