The Electoral Commission (EC) has charged the Ghana Police Service to arrest and prosecute persons registering minors and foreigners in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise.
At a press briefing on Monday, May 13 in Accra by the Deputy chair of the Commission, Dr Bossman Asare, he argued that several reports to the commission state that some political parties are rather encouraging minors and foreigners to engage in the voter registration process.
”We continue to receive reports that minors and non-Ghanaians are being encouraged by certain persons who are members of political parties to register as voters. The Commission has seen a report from the Western Region specifically in Mpohor where some two persons who allegedly facilitated the registration of five minors have been apprehended by the Police. We wish to use this opportunity to urge parents especially to dissuade their children who are less than 18 years old from registering as voters”, he said.
Dr. Bossman Asare however expressed displeasure about the ongoing describing it as unacceptable and undermining the country’s electoral democracy.
“We believe the political parties, as the main stakeholders in the general elections, must be dedicated to supporting a credible register as well. Consequently, we find attempts by parties to support the registration of minors and foreigners completely unacceptable and aimed at undermining the country’s electoral democracy. We urge the Police to apply the laws on those who have been apprehended to serve as a deterrent to others in the enterprise of facilitating the registration of minors and foreigners,” he fumed.