The National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Thursday accused the Electoral Commission (EC) of masterminding a plot to disenfranchise its support base.
“The deployment of the BVR [Biometric Voter Registration] equipment did not follow any predetermined formula made to be accepted by stakeholders to give assurance of political neutrality in this distribution of the equipment to the centres,” the NDC’s General Secretary John Asiedu Nketia said at a press conference Thursday covered by Ghanamatters.com
He added: “We have received reports from our strongholds that some areas are being underserved, either deliberately or inadvertently while the strongholds of our opponent have been overserved with its obvious consequences.”
Mr Nketia further maintained “owing to the fact that the distribution of registration forms was not based on any scientific formula one of the main challenges for the exercise has been the shortage of registration forms mostly in NDC strongholds such as the Northern Regions and other parts of the Volta Region.”
“Our observation of the registration exercise so far seems to point to a calculated and well-rehearsed orchestration designed by the Electoral Commission to intentionally create a state of confusion that will allow cable, privileged and well positioned political players to exploit in pursuit of their parochial partisan interest rather than the national interest of securing a credible register which is a prerequisite for any free and fair elections,” he stated.
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PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS, COMRADE JOHNSON ASIEDU NKETIA ON SOME ISSUES RELATION TO THE ONGOING LIMITED VOTER REGISTRATION EXERCISE ON THURSDAY 27TH JUNE, 2019
Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen of the media, you are welcome to the headquarters of the NDC once again, and we thank you for coming. We continue to count on your coperation with the party and believe this will continue for the larger benefit of the Ghanaian people.
We have invited you here this morning to brief you on our observations so far about the ongoing limited voter registration exercise which in our view is fraught with massive challenges and irregularities.
During the period leading to the commencement the limited registration exercise, the National Democratic Congress raised several red flags which we thought if not addressed may adversely impact on the success of the exercise. Most of the issues we raised were fiercely ignored and treated with contempt by the Jean Mensah – Bossman Asare led Electoral Commission
Firstly, we strongly raised issues with the setting of targets by the Electoral Commission in relation to the expected number of qualified voters to be registered, insisting on the need for a reliable population data from the Ghana Statistical Service. We were of the opinion that, sufficient statistical data will be indispensable in the accurate planning of procurement and deployment of electoral materials, as well as the effective planning of an efficient distribution of registration centres across the country. We strongly believed such information was going to be critical for the assessment of the success or otherwise of the exercise at the end of the registration period.
The NDC subsequently requested for and obtained the data from the Ghana Statistical Service to assist the EC in the planning process, but this data was flatly rejected by the Commission.
Secondly, we indicated that the VMS system (Online system) which were already fixed in the District offices of the EC throughout the country, were not designed for mass registration and for which reason any attempt to deploy it for that purpose will generate functionality challenges. This advice was also flatly ignored by the Commission
Thirdly, the NDC insisted that the registration must be decentralized to the Electoral area level using the BVR kits (offline systems), as has been the practice in the previous exercises. The EC having failed to service the BVR kits for no reasonable cause after parliament had made money available for the purpose, turned round to declare that the BVR equipment obsolete and therefore no longer fit to be used for the registration exercise.
Fourthly, following the public sympathy generated for the NDCs position against the commission’s decision to restrict the registration exercise to the District offices of the EC, citing the attendant hardship and impediments it could place on potential registrants, the commission responded by promising to provide buses to convey all such registrants from their villages to the district centres for registration. This claim was made in an interview on Citi FM. Take a listen (Insert: Voice of Dr. Bossman on Citi FM)
At a subsequent IPAC meeting which was held less than 3 weeks to the start of the exercise, the commission flatly denied having made such a promise, indicating that they will rather deploy some limited number of BVR kits to areas considered remote and inaccessible from District Capitals. When we sought information on the proposed number of BVR kits to be deployed, the EC told the meeting that they were yet to evaluate the 7000 BVR kits to determine those that are in working condition based upon which a decision would be made about the additional number of registration centers to be created to complement the 250 proposed district centers.
We also raised an issue with the possible challenges that could arise with the deployment of two different systems or technologies for the registration of voters in the same exercise. We were again ignored with contempt.
When the NDC requested for a definite target for the registration exercise, the EC first mentioned that about 300,000 qualified voters will be registered. They later adjusted it to 500,000 and subsequently announced 700,000 at Press Conference 2 days after the registration exercise had started. We pointed out that lack of specificity on the registration target could result in under or over procurement of registration materials which may lead to shortages or excesses in the supply of registration materials in certain areas, opening the Commission up for all manner of accusation including deliberate attempt to either suppress or enhance the voter population in particular strongholds of political parties.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the NDC expressed serious misgivings about the commission approaching an important exercise such as the compilation of voter register through guess work, instead of scientifically determined figures, the commission responded in a rather bizarre manner, indicating in a radio interview that the NDC is an existential threat to Ghana’s democracy. Take a listen (insert: Voice of Dr. Bossman, EC)
Again, the established system for monitoring of registration exercises by political parties has been the deployment of registration agents to help prevent unqualified persons (under-aged and foreigners) from registering as voters. We made the point that this approach will be greatly hampered and severely compromised if the registration proceeded at district centers, without clearly defining to the knowledge of all political parties through a gazette notification the additional registration centres to be designated by the commission as required by law (CI 91).
Ladies and Gentlemen, today is the 11th day into the implementation of the limited voter registration exercise and the NDC considers it appropriate to conduct a midterm review of the exercise. Today’s meeting with you provides an opportunity to compare the actual implementation of the exercise vis a vis the various red flags we raised during the planning stage, which the commission adamantly refused, denied or ignored as a basis of determining the success or otherwise of the exercise so far.
In furtherance of the interest of the NDC, the party deployed agents and monitoring teams from constituency as well as regional officers to all the district centers to monitor the exercise in their various areas of jurisdiction.
A call center was set up by the party at the Headquarters to receive reports from all over the country about the progress of the exercise. The issues identified and the reports received from the field constitute the basis for the evaluation exercise we are going to undertake at this press conference.
Online Equipment Failure
The NDC stands vindicated today due to the widespread failure of the VMS equipment in the majority of the district centres due to reasons such as poor internet connectivity, power outages and poorly or improperly trained personnel to operate the equipment. This has led to the abandonment of the online registration process in several districts throughout the country.
The commission has responded by deploying an unknown number of BVR equipment to various centres without prior notice to political parties and other stakeholders; therefore making it difficult for political parties to track the movement of the equipment to avoid misapplication. The deployment of the BVR equipment did not follow any predetermined formula known and accepted by stakeholders to give assurance of political neutrality in the distribution of the equipment. We have received reports from our strongholds that some areas are being underserved either deliberately or inadvertently, whiles the strongholds of our opponent have been over-served, with its obvious consequences.
For Example, In the Dormaa West Constituency there was no registration on the first day, due to the poor network for the VMS system (online) and the non-availability of any BVR equipment complementation.
Poor and haphazard deployment of Offline Equipment’s
We hold the view, that, if the commission had decided to concentrate on the use of the BVR kits and had been forth coming with the number that is serviceable, it would have been possible to zone the country up for the purpose of optimizing the use of the limited equipment so as to take the registration to the door steps of the voter in the electoral areas. This would have addressed many of the challenges that have confronted the commission in this limited registration exercise.
Inadequate number of Registration Centers leading to over congestion at the centres
The Commission can be free to evade reality by understating the number of eligible registrants in the country, but the field work will expose them. The effort of the commission to limit the number of qualified Ghanaian voters eligible to register from 300,000 as contained in the King James version to 500,000 in the Revised Standard Version and finally to 700,000 in the New International Version of the electoral commissions Bible; has been exposed as fruitless by the number of Ghanaian youth who inundate the registration centres daily to wait for several hours unend in very harsh weather conditions, in order to access a right granted to them by article 42 of the constitution of the Republic of Ghana to register and vote.
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, this is completely an avoidable hardship deliberately imposed by the electoral commission on innocent youth, whose only crime is daring to exercise their civic right.
Shortage of Registration Materials
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, as the old adage goes, if you fail to plan, you have already planned to fail. A successful planning of any registration exercise must begin with the establishment of reasonably accurate projection of number of persons to be captured and this will be the basis for the establishment of the registration input requirements, including printed forms, number of BVR equipment required, number of personnel needed to man the equipment efficiently, the number of registration centers needed and the time period required for a successful exercise. As a result of the guess-work employed in establishing their registration target, the rest of the preparatory work could only follow suit. And as you may be aware when you do guess work you achieve guessed result. Owing to the fact that the distribution of registration forms was not based on any scientific formula, one of the main challenges of the exercise has been the shortage of registration forms, mostly in NDC strongholds such as the Northern Regions and other parts of the Volta Region.
Illegal and clandestine registration through collusion between EC officials and operatives of the ruling NPP
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, one worrying occurrence during this registration exercise in the last ten days, has been the exposure of illegal and clandestine attempts to register persons in several areas facilitated by a grand collusion between EC officials and operatives of the ruling New Patriotic Party.
The following reports have been received:
The NDC monitoring team reported that on 20th June, 2019, five EC officials were caught registering over one hundred minors in the MCEs office at Birim Central Municipal area.
Secondly, At the Ayawaso District Office located at EC HQ, one NPP Tescon Executive Officer was arrested on Day 6 with already completed registration materials in his car Toyota Camry with registration No. GR 4015-10 and was taken to the Adabraka Police Station. See photos and videos.
Thirdly, in Adansi Asokwa and Manhyia Constituencies new registration cernters were created and equipped with BVR equipments with registration proceeding frantically in the presence of NPP officials, but without notice to NDC at all.
Fourthly, in Atwima Nwabiagya of Ashanti Region the BVR equipment was found manned by persons who are neither permanent nor temporarily accredited EC officials, but busily registering students at Toase Senior High School.
These we believe was made possible by the commissions refusal to disclose fully the number of BVRs kits to be deployed and to which registration centres they will be used 21 days before the commencement of the exercise as required by law under the CI 91,
Wrong Capture of Registrants Details of polling stations
Our monitoring teams have also reported wrong data capture of registrants particularly that of illiterates resulting in the wrongful assignment of polling stations to registered voters to places far away from their villages of residence. The objective will be to deliberately deny them access to a convenient polling station to cast their vote on voting day. Many of such reports have been observed in the strongholds of the NDC.
In Atebubu Amantin District in the Bono East region a wrong calibration of the registration equipment resulted in the printing of wrong registration date on voter ID cards falling outside the stipulated registration period. This could have led to automatic deletion of names of such registrants from the register at the cleaning or the deduplication stage of the registration process.
In Another instance in Obuasi where the BVR equipment was found to have been preloaded with over one hundred (100) names before the commencement of the registration. This was discovered at the close of registration of day 1, by vigilante NDC agents.
Intimidation of registrants in NDC strongholds by NPP Vigilantes operating on the guise of National Security
Ladies and Gentlemen we cannot end this press conference without commenting on the intimidation and harassment of potential registrants in NDC strongholds by NPP vigilantes operating under the guise of state security agencies with the objective of disrupting the exercise, leading to the suppression of the voter numbers in these areas.
At Akweley, a suburb of Kasoa, NPP thugs unleash an unprovoked violence on Mr. Freeman Adjah Tetteh, the registration officer for turning down an order by the MCE to have special numbers issued to people who were in the queue after close of the day’s registration. The MCE in response ordered his boys to beat up the registration officer, a headmaster at St. Mary’s Anglican JHS at Aklweley. The Constituency Youth Organiser popularly known as Nana 1, stormed the centre in a Rambo style with his gang and fired warning shots.
There was a similar incident at Ablekuma District Office of the EC where a supposed NPP assembly member brought in a loaded gun and machete welding guys to cause commotion.
In Ashanti Region which is the stronghold of the NPP (the governing party), school buses of government second cycle schools have been commandeered by government officials and NPP MPs to convey students including minors and under-aged ones to registration centers and in some cases the BVR equipment are moved from the registration centers to the campuses , while same officials of government are directing headmasters of second cycle schools in NDC strongholds to refuse the grant of exeat to students who are 18years and above to walk to their various centers near their schools to register.
A typical case in point is the Offinso North District in the Ashanti Region and the Toase Senior High School case mentioned earlier. In the Afadjato South District for example, the DCE Hon Wisdom Senanu Saneadza has confirmed through a telephone conversation with our monitoring team on his phone number 0243275790, that he has directed the Heads of 3 second cycle schools not to grant any student an exeat within this registration period.
These are but a few examples of widespread attempt at voter suppression in the registration exercise. A combination of several other widespread irregularities has also resulted in the loss of registration days to certain districts. Some which includes Dormaa West Constituency and many others.
In conclusion, our observation of the registration exercise so far seem to pint to a calculated and well-rehearsed orchestration designed by the Electoral Commission to intentionally create a state of confusion that will allow capable, privileged and well position political players to exploit in pursuit of their parochial partisan interest rather than the national interest of securing a credible register which is a prerequisite for free and fair elections.
source: Ghanamatters.com