Over 3.4 million Ghanaians issued voter ID card in first 10 days

The Electoral Commission has revealed that over 3.4 million Ghanaians were issued the new voters’ ID card in the first 10 days of the registration exercise. 

According to the commission, 3,442,954 persons registered as of July 8, 2020.

The voter registration exercise started on Tuesday, June 30, 2020, and is expected to end August 6, 2020.

The commission projects to register 16.5 million eligible Ghanaians by the end of the exercise.

The 3.4 million registered represents almost 21% of the commission’s target.

As part of efforts by the commission to ensure no eligible Ghanaian is disenfranchised, the EC allocated two days, July 10 and July 11 to visit senior high schools to enrol them onto the register.

This came after some observers expressed concern over the possibility of disenfranchising eligible voters, especially SHS students who had attained the age of 18 but were unable to step out of their campuses to register due to the COVID-19 protocols.

The EC’s move has, however, been met with some opposition from the National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations of Ghana.

According to the council, they were not consulted before the decision was reached.

The council contends the EC’s decision to register Senior High School students defeats the logic for which the students were sent back to school.

“The students were to be in school to do their revision and sit for the exams,” Alexander Danso, the President of National Council of Parent-Teacher Associations, said.

Mr. Danso expressed worry that the students were exposed to more risk of contracting COVID-19.

“Those who are coming to do the registration, have they been tested? Are they free from the virus? We have to take into consideration all these things.”

“But if you don’t consult and you don’t do anything and you say you are going to register the students, is that why they brought them to the school? That is not part of it,” he added.

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) had also raised concerns about the legality of the EC’s move to register the eligible Senior High School students.

Responding to the question about the legality of the EC’s latest decision, Director of Electoral Services at the EC, Dr. Serebour Quaicoe, said the registration of the students will be matched to the current registration centres that have been gazetted for the registration.