Former National Democratic Congress (NDC) Representative at IPAC, Mr Ahmed M. Gedel has urged the Electoral Commission of Ghana to address the challenges threatening the ongoing limited voter registration.
According to him, the ongoing limited voter registration exercise has been marred by the incompetence and maladministration of the Electoral Commission headed by Adukwei Jean Mensah and Bossman Asare.
He said the errors encountered were the result of a persistent failure to handle the registration process effectively and efficiently. Mr Gedel added that EC exhibited incompetence by presenting incorrect registration figures for Days 2 and 3 of the exercise.
According to reports, the EC announced 25,287 as the number registered on Day 2 though the actual figure was later said to be 19,267.
Ahmed Gedel said the discrepancies sparked concerns about the credibility of the process and tainted the Electoral Commission’s credibility. However, the EC failed to learn from its mistake and made another error on Day 3, announcing 43,417 registered voters instead of the 48,616 registered.
Based on the stated lapses, the former IPAC member said there are now doubts over the EC’s incompetence in conducting a credible registration exercise and, by extension, the 2024 elections.
Though the EC has yet to comment on the errors, it is clear that the commission needs to take urgent steps to restore public trust in the registration process, Mr Gedel opined.
He explained that the credibility of the electoral process is at stake, and the EC must take urgent steps to address these concerns and ensure that the errors are not a sign of more serious problems to come.
The NDC is, therefore, calling on the EC to be more transparent in its operations and to take steps to prevent similar errors from occurring in the future.
