The teenagers want EC to conduct voters' registration exercise before elections
Two teenagers in Lower Manya Krobo Municipality in Eastern Region have secured an interlocutory injunction from the Koforidua High Court against the Electoral Commission from conducting the District level election scheduled to be held on January 17, 2023, in the municipality.
The applicants Michael Tetteh, and Angel Agyemang, both residents of Agormanya and Asitey respectively are restraining the respondent, the Electoral Commission and its agents or officers from conducting the District Level Elections in Lower Manya Krobo until the final determination of the case on violation of their constitutional right to vote in the upcoming elections under article 33 of the 1992 constitution of Ghana.
According to the applicants, the commission has failed to conduct a voter registration exercise to enable them to register having attained 18 years.
Paragraph 8 of the affidavit by the applicants states “that since turning 18, we have not had any opportunity to register to vote or be qualified to be elected as Assembly Members in the Lower Manya Krobo District Assembly.”
They added, “we have been further advised and believe same to be true that our right to vote is likely to be contravened if the Respondent is allowed to conduct the district level elections in Lower Manya Krobo district level election.”
The applicants prayed the court to restrain the Electoral Commission from conducting the elections until the commission conducts the voters' registration exercise in accordance with article 45(a) of the constitution. The Electoral Commission is mandated to compile the register of voters and revise it at such periods as may be determined by law.
The Municipality was scheduled to hold the district-level election on January 17, 2023 which a total of 127 male candidates are vying to represent their electoral areas whilst 280 are contesting the Unit Committee polls.
The district-level elections was not held for eight years in Lower Manya Krobo due to a dispute between the Municipality and Dangme West District, now known as Shai-Osudoku over 11 electoral areas created at Akuse.
The dispute which started with the defection of some of Akuse assembly members to the then Dangme West District, was, however, settled by a Supreme Court ruling in favour of Lower Manya Krobo.
The election of Assembly members and unit committee members was immediately held in 2013 and subsequent periods however the election has not been coterminous with the national calendar of the electoral commission.
Meanwhile, Konor of Manya Krobo Traditional Area, Nene Sakite in a petition dated 12 December 2022, called on EC to reconsider mainstreaming the district level elections in Lower Manya Krobo with the national routine.
“…we wish to kindly plead and appeal to the Electoral Commission of Ghana to reconsider its decision in the conduct of the Lower Manya Krobo District Level Elections in January, 2023 to enable the district join the nationwide District Level Elections in 2023.”
