Ghana Votes

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

EC must remove minors from the register

It is an incontestable fact that it is  the responsibility of all Ghanaians to ensure free, fair  and transparent general election on December 7.

It is equally true  that it is not the responsibility of only the Electoral Commission (EC) to ensure  election becomes  free and fair.

The times acknowledges though, that a greater responsibility rests with the EC, but  there is very little the Commission can do  without  the involvement  of Ghanaians  in protecting  the electoral process.

It is for this reason  that we support the EC for its  decision to true  to the court, to determine the line  of action  to take against  the minors  whose  names  appear in the biometric  electoral roll.

According to the EC, it intends  going  to the court to seek a way out of this disturbing development.

Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Djan ,chairman of the commission, in  an interaction with parliamentary  candidates on the December 7 poll in the Ashanti Region in Kumasi, last Friday, disclosed that after the evaluation of the biometric  register, the EC had uncovered a high registration of under-age voters, across the country.

This announcement, even though not entirely unexpected, should  be worrying  because one of the ills that the biometric  register was intended to cure was  intended to cure  was  the bloating of the  voters register with under-age voters.

It is regrettable that in spite of all the measures  adopted, including the exhibition and cleaning of the register in September,  minor  still found  their way into register.

The times is disappointed  that citizens did not heed the advice to raise  objections on  the registration of minors and non-Ghanaians  who did not qualify  to register, during the registration exercise , culminating in the mess  being  experience in the register.

The EC is now left with no other choice, than to go to court to seek an order to get rid of  the names  of the minors , from the register.

The Times wishes we never got  to this point , if all of us had played our civic roles and prevented the minors  from registering.

We encourage the EC  to hasten  the process of seeking the intervention of the courts , because of the limited  time at its disposal.

The times  believes quick resolution of this matter would ensure a credible voters register and consequent transparent  election in December .

The Ghanaian Times

No comments:

Post a Comment