The Director of Public Affairs of the Electoral Commission (EC), Sylvia Annoh has stated that the commission is not seeking to synchronise its data with the National Identification Authority (NIA) but is seeking to rely on the physical NIA card to prove a person’s citizenship as a precondition for registration.
According to her, “the commission has not stated anywhere it intends to use biometric data in NIA’s database so the Minority Leader’s suggestion EC didn’t understand data synchronisation because the commission has indicated it is not going to rely on biometric data of the citizenry captured by NIA is misrepresentation of issues.
“It is interesting the National Democratic Congress (NDC), which accused us of being in bed with NIA to rig the 2020 elections, will turn around and propose data synchronisation which will require the commission to work directly with the NIA and rely extensively on its biometric data in its database,” Mrs Annoh noted.
She was responding to the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu’s suggestion EC didn’t understand data synchronisation because it has indicated during its meeting with Members of Parliament (MPs) it is not going to rely on biometric data of the citizenry captured by NIA.
Mrs Annoh insisted that Mr Iddrisu had not read the Constitutional Instrument (CI) 126 well and if he had done that it would be obvious to him the commission was not seeking to synchronise its data with NIA and explained that the recently passed CI to guide registration of voters, CI 126, did not include provisions to allow for use of biometric data of NIA.
“Merely presenting one’s card to prove one’s citizenship does not require direct relationship or collusion with NIA as the Minority has sought to portray, I wonder why the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has accused the commission and the authority of devising means to deny 11 million citizens chance to vote in the upcoming 2020 general election. -peacefmonline.com
