Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr
Seasoned journalist Kwesi Pratt Jr. has kicked against the new Constitutional Instrument (C.I) proposed by the Electoral Commission to use the Ghana Card as the only identification card for the 2024 elections.
Last week, Parliament held a pre-presentation discussion on the C.I. to collect inputs from relevant sources for the drafting of the Constitutional Instrument (Cl).
In September last year, the EC sought to have the Ghana Card be the sole document for voter registration in the country.
The move agitated the minority group, and they subsequently opposed the CI, saying it would disenfranchise voters. But the EC insisted that it would use the Ghana Card for voter registration.
According to the electoral management body, the Ghana Card is the most authentic means of identifying Ghanaians, hence the Commission’s decision to use it in compiling a new database of voters.
Subsequently, on February 8, the Minority in Parliament reiterated its strong opposition to the use of the Ghana Card for voter registration. They explained that many Ghanaians may not have access to it in order to register.
In preparation for the next general elections, the EC is proposing the use of the Ghana Card as the only form of identification medium to qualify a Ghanaian citizen, who is eligible to vote, to be registered or enrolled onto the voters’ register.
Tackling the matter on Peace FM's 'Kokrokoo' programme, the Editor-in-Chief of the Insight newspaper pointed out the proposal makes absolutely no sense. He further argued that the EC asked for a new register and was given 80 million dollars to redo the register, which they claim is credible, therefore he wonders why the Commission would be asking for a new C.I.
"We have put together a new register [80 million] and we claim there is no dirt on it; the best register in Ghana's history. So, why do we want to do another register? Why make a new law?" he queried.
Mr. Pratt asserted the EC's proposal is of no beneficial use stressing there is already a faultless register, so there is no need for a new C.I.
"It is of no importance...What is the sense in this new C.I. because we have a C.I that's operative. We have a register that they claim is credible, and that nothing impedes a person who reaches the age of 18 from registering his or her name. So, where from all this noise? Unless, of course, there is some other motive I don't know," he exclaimed.
