Members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Central Region on Tuesday thronged the Regional office of the Electoral Commission (EC) in protest of a new voters' register by the Commission.
The protesters, led by the Regional Chairman of the NDC, Mr E. K. T. Addo and some Regional Executives of the Party, clad in red, peacefully marched to the office of the EC and presented a petition to the Regional Director, Mrs Philomena Edusei.
They held placards with inscriptions such as "The new register is a waste", “we are for peace" "let’s all protect the public purse" and "we need money for roads".
The police were in their numbers to ensure that the demonstration was peaceful.
Presenting the petition to the EC, Mr. Addo, reiterated calls by the Party that the basis for the new voters' register was needless.
"We are Ghanaians and we have the right to protest against this waste" while indicating that it would only be fair that the EC took dissenting views on the new register into consideration.
According to him, the EC could not go ahead with a new register when government still owed many communities essential infrastructures such as roads and hospitals.
Some of the protesters who spoke to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said they were surprised government intended to spend the hard-earned taxpayers’ money on a new voters’ register.
"We are suffering. Fishermen and the ordinary Ghanaian is suffering and the only thing you can do is allocate such huge monies for a new register. This is not right," one of the protesters stated.
Mrs Philomena Edusei received the petition and indicated it would be accordingly forwarded to the Headquarters in Accra for consideration.
She applauded the protesters for the peaceful manner in which they conducted themselves.
Source: GNA
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THERE WERE SOME FRAUD IN 2012 ELECTION WHICH WAS CAUSED BY THE THE COMBINATION OF BAD OVER BLOATED REGISTER AND FAULTY VERIFICATION SYSTEM. THE ELECTION WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HELD FOR ONE DAY IN 10 HOURS WAS HELD OVER 10 HOURS IN TWO DAYS IN MANY PLACES OF VOLTA AND NORTHERN REGIONS. THIS HAPPENED ON THE CLAIM OF FAULTY AND UNRELIABLE MACHINES. SO THE BIOMETRIC VERIFICATOPN WAS IGNORED. IN MANY PLACES NOBODY WAS ALLOWED TO CHALLENGE IN THE MANUAL VERIFICATION. AN ATTEMPT TO CHALLENGE IN SOME PLACES LED TO THE ATTACKS AND BEATINGS OF THE CHALLENGERS. SOME HAD TO RUN FOR THEIR LIVES. BROTHER OF BBC JOURNALIST ELIZABETH OHENE, DR OHENE, A WELL KNOWN PSYCHIATRIST AND A NATIVE OF VOLTA REGION SUFFERED A SEVERE BEATINGS BY NDC THAT LED TO THE INJURY OF HIS EYE. ALL BECAUSE HE ATTEMPTED TO BRING SANITY IN THE VOTING IN HIS OWN PLACE IN THE REGION. THE CHALLENGE OF 2012 ELECTION AT THE SUPREME COURT INTRODUCED SOME MEASURES WHICH REDUCED THE FRAUD THAT TOOK NDC BY SURPRISE TO LOOSE THE ELECTIONS. THE LOST OF 2016 ELECTIONS BY NDC DOES NOT STILL MAKE THE REGISTER AND THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM ALL CREDIBLE. LIKE ARMED ROBERS WHO ALWAYS LOOK FOR LACUNA TO OUTWIT THE POLICE, NDC STILL HOPE TO RELY ON THE LOOPHOLES IN THE CURRENT ELECTORAL SYSTEM TO TRY ANOTHER CHANCE OF DUBIOUS DEEDS. THOUGH THIS MAY STILL NOT WORK FOR THEM, THE EC DOES NOT HAVE TO LEAVE ANYTHING FOR GRANTED BUT TO KEEP THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM SACROSANCT. THIS IS THE BASIS FOR THE UNREASONABLE FEAR OF NDC, HENCE THEIR PERSISTENT PROTEST AGAINST THE NEW REGISTER.
WHY is the NDC hell bent of keeping the existing voters register? WHAT did the do to it that they do not want it changed. Parliament has already approved and allocated funds for the EC to do their work so What is the problem that the NDC has?