I did the thumbprinting - Muntaka denies allowing six-year-old to vote

The Member of Parliament for the Asawase Constituency, Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, has denied allowing his six-year-old daughter to thumbprint on his behalf.

According to him, he only raised her thumb to take her through the process but actually did the thumb printing himself.

Muntaka Mubarak Mohammed sparked controversy after he held the hand of a child said to be six years old to thumbprint the presidential and parliamentary ballot papers.

Visuals from the Peace of God polling station at Aboabo in the Ashanti Region where the incumbent Member of Parliament went to cast his ballot show the legislator and his daughter clad in all-white apparel. Having gone through the process and received ballot papers, he walked to the designated box for thumbprinting with the little girl and held her hand to thumbprint.

He later took the ballot papers, folded them, and gave them back to the minor to drop in the ballot box.

He, however, dismissed claims his daughter did the thumbprinting on his behalf.

Speaking to Citi news after voting, he said: “If you see her, she’s only six years old. She doesn’t even understand what’s going on. I raised her thumb and did the thumbprinting; it was virtually me doing it. If I had given it to her, she would not have even known what to do. She’s my princess and I came with her during the last elections. I’m just taking her through the process.”

The incumbent MP for Asawase Constituency says the electoral process has been smooth so far and believes he would retain his seat for the fifth time.

“I am very confident that whatever happens, democracy will be victorious today. So far, all of us have seen that the process is going on smoothly. Everything is calm because every polling station started well. I have taken updates from my reps from all the 206 polling stations in the constituency and everything is cool. I have no doubt on my mind that the people of Asawase are going to retain me. I am super confident that the people are going to retain me at the end of the day,” he said.

Alhaji Muntaka is being contested by the NPP’s Alhaji Alidu Seidu in this year's poll.