Former Ghana High Commissioner for the UK, Ambassador Victor Smith has sent stern warning to the Electoral Commission in its refusal to conduct a forensic audit of the 2024 voter register.
Victor Smith’s comments are in a reaction to the EC acknowledgment that there are errors with Voters Register but insist it is working internally to rectify them.
Speaking on Dwaboase programme on TV XYZ today September 26, he warned that the reluctance by EC Boss may escalate the tension in the country.
He said “The auditing has to be done and it must be forensic…We don’t have to use the EC to do that job”.
According to him the NDC will halt the country if the EC refuses to audit the register. We have the numbers to execute such task, he stated.
He noted that “when the youth of the country come together as a force, you can’t stand. They could end up with a popular uprising.”
Ambassador Smith emphasized “Whatever they do, we must have that audit [of the voter register] otherwise, Afghanistan, Gaza and Ukraine combined is what will happen in Ghana.”
Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), chiefs and other political parties has called for an audit of the register. Recent is the Movement for Change (M4C) and presidential hopeful of the Alliance for Revolutionary Change (A4RC), Mr. Alan Kyerematen.
He called on all the political parties to come together and engage the EC in producing the best register for the 2024 election.
Alan “believe that approaching the resolution of the doubts around the Voters Register in such a joint manner ensures transparency of intent that would settle any lingering issues around the Voters Register, and position the country for a free, fair, transparent, and credible General Elections on December 7, 2024″.
Daasebre Kwebu Ewusi VII the immediate past Vice President of the National House of Chiefs has also called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct a forensic audit of the voters register.
Speaking at a press briefing in the Central Region, Daasebre Kwebu Ewusi VII noted of the illegal transfer of votes particularly to Ajumako Enyan Essiam and Pusiga Constituencies.
Preaching peace and stability he said “The cost of violence, if any, far outweighs the cost of an audit”.
Moreover if readers would recall just after the voters register exhibition exercise the NDC raised series of concerns over the register for which they demanded that a forensic audit be done.
Below is the list of observations and concerns raised by the NDC party.
A. Our Findings From The Unfit for Purpose Voters Register So Far Include:
1. 243,540 Previous Transfers illegally added to 2024 Transfers, including Repetition of illegally Transferred names.
2. 15,000+ Unidentifiable voter transfer paths (due to fake registration of voters???). Where were they originally registered?
3. 3,957 voters in 2023 register but deleted from 2024 Provisional Register Due to Transfer
4. 2,094 voters transferred to different polling stations but not found in Absent Voter List as required by Law.
5. Corrupt files not showing names and photos of the registered voters (what if this happens on election day?).
WHY FORENSIC AUDIT?
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We believe a forensic audit will answer the following questions:
1. The Extent of Manipulation: How widespread is the issue of illegal voter transfers? If the Pusiga EC Office could transfer voters from Tamale South Constituency without proper authorization, what is the scale of similar incidents across the country? How many voters might have been affected, and how can this be accurately quantified?
2. System Vulnerabilities: What specific vulnerabilities in the Electoral Commission’s systems – Human and Technical – allowed for these unauthorized transfers? Are there specific protocols or security measures that were bypassed or ignored? Specifically, will the EC’s attempts to address these weaknesses prevent further manipulations ahead of the December 07, elections? If yes, what prevented the EC from not instituting such measures?
3. Timeliness of Provisional Register: Why was there such an avoidable delay in providing the Provisional Voters Register to the NDC?
4. Impact of the Mistakes on the Elections: What is the potential impact of the admitted mistakes and errors by the Electoral Commission on the fairness of the upcoming elections? Will the mistakes compromise the integrity of the election results?
5. Historical Comparisons: The EC generalized its mistakes by referencing errors made by past Commissions. How does this comparison help address the current concerns, and what lessons have been learned from previous errors to prevent similar issues in the future?
6. Timeline for Corrections: What is the timeline for addressing these issues in order to derive a reliable, credible, accurate and fit-for-purpose voters register before printing of the registers, and other materials will commence as originally planned and agreed at IPAC?
Answering these questions honestly and truthfully through an independent forensic audit is non-negotiable and essential for safeguarding the credibility of Ghana’s electoral process.
The independent forensic audit will ensure that the upcoming elections reflect the true will of the suffering people of Ghana.