Ghanaians are urging the EC not to use Ghana cards for voter registration.

Coalition of Ghanaians Without Ghana Card (GWiGC) is urging the general public to oppose any efforts by the Electoral Commission (EC) to use the Ghana card as the singular document for voter registration in the 2024 general elections.

Richard Kasu, the Coalition's chief convener, issued the appeal at a Thursday press conference in Accra.

According to the group, the EC's insistence on pursuing this tangent could disenfranchise a number of Ghanaians who may not have the Ghana ID when the voter registration exercise begins.

"Having thoroughly investigated the issues and reforms being contemplated by the EC, including its insistence on the use of the Ghana Card as the sole document for voter registration, we wish to reiterate our displeasure with the EC's unpopular position. – We have taken note of the EC's ongoing efforts to review the existing Constitutional Instrument (CI), in particular sections pertaining to voter registration. As you may recall, on Friday, March 31, 2023, the Parliament unanimously rejected the EC's CI that sought to make the Ghana card the solitary document for voter registration," the document stated.

The Coalition stated that it was cognizant of the ongoing premium registration for the Ghana Card at various NIA regional offices.

"According to our research, Head of Corporate Affairs Ag. of the NIA, Dr. Abudu Abdul-Ganiyu, announced in a press release for the general public's information that as of Monday, December 19, 2022, the agency will offer premium registration services at its Ashanti, Eastern, and Western Regional offices. The Coalition noted that these centres will operate in addition to the premium centres at the NIA Head Office and Calbank Head Office in Accra.

According to the aforementioned announcement, the premium registration centres will offer the subsequent fee-based registration services:

Registration and issuance of a Ghana Card for the first time costs GHC 280; replacement of lost, stolen, or damaged cards costs GHC 110; and updating a personal record necessitating the printing of a new card costs GHC 110.

The Coalition views this as selective and a commercialization of the Ghana card acquisition, adding that "it is a tool for excluding the vast majority of Ghanaians from its national use and benefits."

The group also observed that Ghanaians who make the effort to travel to regional offices of the NIA in order to register are unable to do so for a variety of flimsy reasons, including network issues and a dearth of printing cards, among others.

"What happens to the impoverished Ghanaian who cannot afford the card registration fee? – What happens to individuals departing the Netherlands who lack access to regional capitals for the registration process? Coalition members lamented.

The group urged the EC to consider the far-reaching disadvantages of its entrenched position and to reverse its decision to consolidate the country's nascent democracy going forward.