James Gunu, former DCE, Akatsi North
James Gunu, a former District Chief Executive for Akatsi North in the Volta region has said that, the NPP in attempt to reduce the Ghana card has placed restrictions on its acquisition
According to him, "The Ghana Card is bigger than NPP Card but the government is doing everything possible to reduce it to the status of NPP Card"
Adding that, the attempt to reduce the status of the card is seen in the many restrictions the current government has placed on the cards acquisition
"The attempt to limit its acquisition to the use of birth certificate and passport leaving out the voters id card".
Background
The Ghana Card is a national identity card that is issued by the Ghanaian authorities to Ghanaian citizens – both resident and non-resident, and legally and permanently resident foreign nationals. It is proof of identity, citizenship and residence of the holder. The current version is in ID1 format and biometric.
The process of securing the card has been the bone of contention between the governing NPP and Opposition NDC.
According to the NPP, the voters ID due cannot pass as a proof of Nationality for one to secure the Ghana card,this according to them is as a results of the discrepancies in the Voters ID
The Opposition on the other hand, feels that move by the NPP is a restriction to the acquisition of the Ghana card of the too many Ghanaian populace who do not have a passport or birthday certificate.