EC must do what is right to restore credibility - Wontumi

The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party believes the Electoral Commission (EC) should strive for perfection and scrap the current voters register.

Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi spoke to Peacefmonline.com about the debatable issue which has divided scores of political figures and urged the EC to do the right thing by compiling a new register that would enhance our democracy.

Between 2008 and 2012, available data shows that there has been an unusual increase in the voters register in several constituencies, the New Patriotic Party has alleged.

Led by the party’s vice presidential candidate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, they petitioned the EC to compile a new voters register to guarantee a fair playing field for credible elections next year.

Using facial biometric recognition technology, the NPP’s investigation team fished out 76,286 voters with the same names and faces on the Ghanaian and Togolese voters registers.

But the General Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia also believes the call by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) for a refit of the current voters’ register is a fixed plan to shift blame in the aftermath of the 2016 general elections.

Though the register used in the 2012 general elections could not be said to be a perfect document according to the NDC scribe, it is accurate for now he perceives.

His position is one Chairman Wontumi disagrees with. According to him he finds it quite “nauseating” to hear Aseidu Nketia spew lies about a register that needs to be cleansed.

He called on the EC to compile a new register which would be independently audited by an internationally reputable firm before the 2016 election.

In the meantime, the EC has asked political parties to submit a detailed report by September 22 on their positions on the current voters’ register after the New Patriotic Party lodged a complaint about its credibility.

The Commission also called on Civil Society Organizations to provide their comments on the voters’ register on the said date for the EC to announce a date for a stakeholder’s meeting on the issue.