Limited voter registration: 'We're sticking to 268 district offices' - EC says there'll be another round after district elections

The Electoral Commission (EC) says it is not revising its plan for the upcoming limited voter registration exercise, insisting it will go ahead to conduct the process in its 268 district offices as planned.

The exercise is billed to commence on September 12, 2023, to October 2, 2023. In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Dr Bossman Eric Asare, the Deputy Chair in charge of Corporate Services at the EC, said: "Currently, because of the time, we cannot revise what we have".

He acknowledged some places are far from the district offices but noted that there would be another opportunity for those who who would not be able to register in the upcoming exercise.

"We recognise the challenges. We know there are some places in Nkwanta South, Afram Plains and in almost all the regions of our country, some of the places are so far away from the districts", he said.

Dr Bossman added: "In the unlikely event that people are not able to register, we will still be able to do it again after the District Assembly Elections".

He added that the EC’s proposed Constitutional Instrument, with which it intends to make the Ghana Card the sole identification document for registration, would make it possible for new voters to be enrolled onto the electoral roll for an extended period.

Some political parties, including the National Democratic Congress, have raised concerns about the EC’s decision to hold the limited voter registration exercise at its district offices and not within electoral areas, as it was done in previous exercises.

The parties expressed fear that new voters in remote communities, who may not be able to access the district offices, could be disenfranchised.

The flagbearer of the main opposition National Democratic Congress, Mr John Mahama, also added his voice to that concern and urged the EC to open up the process to all the electoral areas.

Dr Asare, however, told the GNA that the EC is sticking to its original plan.

"We are very much ready for Tuesday. Training of personnel is being finalised. Some of the materials are gone but there are still some more to go".

"We don’t anticipate any challenges and as far as we are concerned, everything is set, and on Tuesday, the exercise will begin in all the 268 registration centres", he said.