No lives ever lost during voter registrations except under Akufo-Addo – NDC

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has said it is only under the Akufo-Addo presidency that lives have been lost in a mere voter registration exercise.

At a press conference on Thursday, 13 August 2020 addressed by the NDC’s Director of Elections, Mr Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, the biggest opposition party said: “As you are aware, the voter registration exercise was characterised by unprecedented violence resulting in severe injuries to scores of Ghanaians”.

“For the first time in the history of the Fourth Republic, innocent citizens have lost their lives by merely going out to exercise their democratic right to register and vote. This is simply sad and unacceptable”, he said.

The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO), he noted, has “corroborated the unprecedented violence that characterised the exercise”, adding: “The state violence and intimidation aimed at voter suppression equally attracted the attention of the British Broadcasting Corporation”.

The former Youth and Sports Minister said: “This notwithstanding, the Jean Mensa-led Electoral Commission in its numerous press conferences and releases, appears unconcerned about these incidents that adversely affected the exercise and prevented some people from registering just as it did in the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence”.

“We wish to extend our condolences to the families of those who painfully and needlessly lost their lives and wish all those who were injured a speedy recovery”, he consoled.

The party also condemned the President for saying he did not hear of any violence in relation to the recently-ended exercise.

“With all these, President Akufo-Addo looked Ghanaians in the face, and told them that he is not aware of the incidents of violence at some registration centres; neither has he heard nor seen any of the state-sponsored intimidation, violence and harassment aimed at suppressing votes especially in NDC strongholds.

“He has also not heard about the gunshot fired by his Rambo Minister for Special Development Initiatives, Hawa Koomson, at a polling station.

“Obviously, he is also not aware of calls for Hawa Koomson’s resignation or dismissal.

“Interestingly, he was quick to hear about the riots in Senior High Schools and immediately issued a directive to that effect. This is a clear symptom of selective amnesia”, Mr Afriyie Ankrah said.

The NDC, he noted, “rejects Akufo-Addo’s claims that he was not aware of the incidents of violence and voter suppression around the country”.

“If he claims he doesn’t know what is going on, doesn’t he watch television or listen to radio or read newspapers? Doesn’t he tweet and make posts on Facebook every blessed day? If he doesn’t do any of the above, what happened to the routine security briefs that he gets as Commander-in-Chief?” the party asked.

The NDC asserted that: “It is only a president who is dishonest and not God-fearing who will be telling Ghanaians, including the clergy, in the face of overwhelming evidence that he doesn’t know what is going on in this country”.

“It is this dishonesty that has permeated his government right from his inaugural speech, which he plagiarised, bringing collateral international embarrassment to Ghana,” adding: “There have been many instances that his dishonesty has manifested”.

Demonstrating that point further, Mr Ankrah said: “Even before Parliament, Akufo-Addo submitted wrong data on the economy. It took the International Monetary Fund to expose him and his government”.

“This is why Ghanaians are in a hurry to vote him out of office”, pointing out that the “participation of the majority of Ghanaians in the Voter Registration exercise in spite of all these challenges is a testimony to this”.

“As the NDC has said over and over again, kicking Akufo-Addo and the NPP out on December 7 is a rescue mission that we must execute together as communal labour. All Ghanaians must get involved and get on board”.