GHANA- Deputy Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr Bossman Eric Asare says, non-Ghanaians who attempted registering the voter’s ID card are being tried in court and also, persons who guaranteed for non-eligible persons are also being prosecuted.
He further cautioned Ghanaians to be particular of the individuals they guarantee for and ensure they guarantee for persons they know personally because a number of Ghanaians are being prosecuted on this grounds. Meanwhile, a Nigerian has also been jailed for attempting to register for the voter’s ID.
“Guarantors must make sure that they know the nationalities of the applicants they are guaranteeing for. It is a crime to guarantee for foreigners to register and vote. If the commission establishes that they are not Ghanaians and you guarantee for them, you are liable for prosecution… Foreigners caught trying to register will be prosecuted. An example is a Nigerian who was arrested and sentenced on Wednesday, July 29, by the Kaneshie District court to 6 months imprisonment with hard labour for attempting to register. There are two individuals who guaranteed for him, the police are looking for them,” he said.
He also disclosed that some Nigeriens have also made their first court appearance for attempting to register for the card.
Dr Bossman Eric Asare added that individuals reported as engaging in multiple registrations would have their names expunged from the voter’s register.
“This registration is an offline registration as such, those applicants who have registered more than ones will be identified through the de-duplication process. Those who have registered more than ones will have their names expunged from the register of voters ones they have been identified as having registered double of multiple times…We are urging those who have already registered not to go to the registration centre again because our system will identify you.”
Although the exercise has been fraught with different challenges, the EC believes the exercise has so far been a successful one. According to the EC, approximately, 15,108,687 applicants had successfully registered as of Monday, August 3, 2020.
The EC was targeting 15 million citizens to register at the end of exercise.
The exercise is expected to end on Thursday, August 6, 2020.
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