Haruna: EC not prepared for elections

The National Youth Organizer of the NDC, Haruna Iddrisu, has stated that the Electoral Commission (EC) appears to lack adequate preparation to organize this year?s general election, since as of now, it had not been able to exhibit the voters? register as demanded by law.

According to him, if care was not taken, the whole process of the election may delay, since the provisional voters? register was not yet available for public study.

He told The Chronicle in an interview at Bole that the commission was supposed to make the provisional register available for public scrutiny before six months to the election.

The Youth Organizer indicated that the provisional register should have been out by this time for those who wanted to effect transfers to do so, but according to him, from the present look of things, transfers may not be possible.

Mr. Iddrisu quoted the C.I. 12, section 17(1) to support his argument, but research into the law proved contrary to his claims.

As stated in the C.I.12 section 17(1), ?the commission shall not later than six months from the end of registration period compile a provisional register of voters for each polling division stating the name, age and sex of each person whose application for registration at that division was accepted.?

But according to, the Brong Ahafo Regional Director of the EC, Mr. Amadu Sulley, the commission would only infringe the law if by September 29; they had not been able to produce the provisional register.

Everybody would recall that the voters? register was closed on March 29, this year, which, at the time of filing this story, was exactly four months.

Mr. Sulley said as at now, no one could chastise the commission for not making the register ready.

Touching on the transfer of voters, Mr. Sulley explained to The Chronicle that there were two types of transfers, which included a registered voter who wanted to transfer his name to a constituency where he or she wanted to file his or her nomination to be voted for as a candidate and a registered voter who also wanted to transfer his or her vote to enable him vote at a different constituency other than the original constituency in which he or she had registered.

The C.I. 15, section 20(1) stated that, ?a registered voter who at any time before a general election is resident for not less than two months in a constituency other than that in which he is registered, may apply to the returning officer of the constituency where he is resident for his name to be entered on the transferred voters? list of the constituency.?

Under section 2 of the C.I.15, sub-regulation 1 an application shall be made; (a) ?not less than twenty one days before the last day of nomination to the constituency where the applicant is resident, where the application relates to a nomination? or (b) ?not less than twenty one days before election day to the constituency where the applicant is resident, where the application relates to voting.?

It continues in sub-section 3 of C.I. 15 that , ? a returning officer to whom an application is made under this regulation shall enter the applicant?s name in the transferred voters? list for the assigned polling station in his constituency if he is satisfied that the applicant has met the residency requirement established in sub-regulation 1 of this regulation and is registered in another constituency.?

Sub-section 4 of the law states: ?whenever a returning officer enters the name of any person on the transferred voters? list, he shall (a) assign the person to a polling station in his constituency and (b) send the copy of the entry to the returning officer of the constituency where the person whose name has been entered is registered.?

Based on this, the Regional Director said the commission was in firm control of affairs and therefore assured Ghanaians not to panic over anything.

He said the EC was prepared to meet the deadline as stated by the law.