New voters register: Thumb print scanner delayed pilot registration - EC

One of the main features which accompanies the new electoral system procured by the Electoral Commission of Ghana for the upcoming December polls has, according to the Commission proven problematic during the pilot registration exercise.

The fingerprint scanner which performs a rather simple function of taking an image of the fingertips and noting its differences slowed the pilot registration exercise on the first day of trials at the Greater Accra Regional office at Sapeiman.

This was revealed by the Greater Accra Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, Kwame Amoah.

Speaking in an interview with GhanaWeb, Mr Amoah narrated that the hitches they experienced on the first day of work bothered largely around the use of sanitisers as regards the thumbprint scanners.

He said… “There was some few hitches so it impeded the process a bit but all these things have been resolved. The thumbprint scanner…it was very slow but what we detected was that if you sanitise it and you don’t wait for it to dry it takes time before it picks the next person’s fingerprints but this time what we did was that use a tissue to clean it so that it will pick very fast…”

In his estimation, although this delayed progress of the work being conducted, it helped achieve the aim of the pilot registration exercise.

The Electoral Commission (EC) on Tuesday, June 2, commenced a pilot voters registration exercise in all 16 regional capitals in the country.

The essence of the exercise, according to the EC, is to identify problems associated with the new voters' register system, as well as its effect under various weather conditions and find ways of mitigating them.

A statement issued on Tuesday said all issues identified would be forwarded to the Commission at the national level for the necessary rectifications to be made before the commencement of the exercise at the end of the month.

“All Ghanaian citizens of 18 years and above and of sound mind are expected to register where they reside when the exercise begins; with either a Ghanaian passport or Ghana card as proof of identification or have two guarantors who have already registered as voters so they can register,” the statement said.