EC’s registration of voters on the island in Afram Plains North to cost each GHC350 – MP

Betty Krosbi Mensah, the representative for Afram Plains North, has requested that the Electoral Commission (EC), through its chairperson Jean Mensa, expeditiously review the voter registration modalities for Afram Plains North, in consultation with the District Inter-Party Committee, by establishing registration centers on all islands to facilitate the registration of voters.

The deployment of mobile voter registration units, as the Commission will do in 2020, is an additional option available to the Commission, she said.

The EC has announced that 18-year-olds will be able to register to vote at any of the nation's 268 district offices from Tuesday, September 12, 2023 through Monday, October 2, 2023.

The Commission announced this at a press conference in Accra titled "Let the Citizen Know."

The commission will charge GHC10 for the replacement of a voter identification card.

The Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Jean Mensa, told journalists, "The voter registration exercise will afford Ghanaians who have attained the age of 18 since the last registration in 2020 and others who are older than 18 but were unable to register during the 2020 registration exercise for various reasons."

At a press conference on Wednesday, August 23, the lawmaker for Afram Plains North stated that the EC must conduct the registration in accordance with the letter and spirit of the constitution by advancing the constitutionally enshrined goals and democratic principles.

"In effect, the Electoral Commission should not and must not exercise its constitutionally delegated powers in a manner so arbitrary as to deny citizens the right to register and vote through administrative action or inaction.

"We in the Afram Plains Constituency are concerned that if the Electoral Commission proceeds with its plan to use only the DistrictOffice as the registration center, it will be a disincentive that will indirectly disenfranchise thousands of eligible voters across many communities in the constituency."

Here is her complete statement...



STATEMENT BY HON. BETTY NANA EFUA KROSBI MENSAH, MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR THE AFRAM PLAINS NORTH CONSTITUENCY, REGARDING THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE VOTER'S REGISTRATION MODALITIES ANNOUNCED BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION, DELIVERED AT A PRESS CONFERENCE IN DONKORKROM ON AUG

My dear constituents in the Afram Plains North district;

Associates from the media;

Distinguished Gentlemen

Introductory Remarks
As your representative in the House of Representatives, I invite you to raise very important issues that affect many of us, our brothers and sisters, and most importantly, our nation's democracy.

Mrs. Jean Mensa, Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, held a press conference in Accra on August 17, 2023, to announce the schedules for the forthcoming Voter Registration Exercise. As you may have heard, the chair of the EC has announced that voter registration will begin on 12 September 2023 and conclude on 2 October 2023.

She added, however, that only the Electoral Commission's district offices have been designated as registration centers for the impending registration.

The registration exercise announced by the Electoral Commission is significant because, since its last registration exercise in 2020, the Commission has not registered eligible voters who turned 18 in the past three years. This registration exercise will give them the opportunity to exercise their voting rights in the forthcoming District Level Elections.

Despite the fact that this is good news for a large number of eligible voters in our constituency, I have received numerous complaints about the registration procedures, which we wish to bring to the attention of the general public and the Electoral Commission so that adequate measures can be taken to ensure that no eligible voters are disenfranchised.

The ability to vote and the Electoral Commission's responsibility

In a democratic state, the right to vote is so fundamental that no impediments may be permitted to prevent eligible citizens from exercising this sacrosanct right.

As you are aware, Article 42 of the Constitution of 1992 states:

"Every Ghanaian over the age of 18 and of sound mind has the right to vote and is ENTITLED to be registered as a voter for the purposes of public elections and referendums."

This right to register as a voter is so crucial that the enjoyment of certain opportunities is contingent upon its exercise. The framers of our constitution stipulated that voter registration is necessary for the enjoying of certain privileges. To be a member of Parliament or a minister of state, for instance, one must be a registered voter. Such is the importance of voter registration!

For this purpose, Articles 45(a) and (e) of the Constitution require the Electoral Commission to compile a voter registration list and implement voter registration expansion programs.

In my opinion, the Electoral Commission must execute this essential mandate in accordance with the spirit and letter of the constitution by advancing its stated goals and democratic principles. In practice, the Electoral Commission should not and must not exercise its constitutionally granted powers in a manner so arbitrary as to deny citizens the right to register and vote through administrative action or inaction.

We in the Afram Plains Constituency are concerned that if the Electoral Commission follows through with its plan to use only the DistrictOffice as the registration center, this will act as a disincentive that will result in the indirect disenfranchisement of thousands of eligible voters in a number of communities within the constituency.

3.0 Characteristics of the Afram Plains Electoral District

The Afram Plains North Constituency, which shares the same geographical characteristics as the Kwahu Afram Plains North District of the Eastern Region, has the greatest land area in the Eastern Region at 2,341,3 square kilometers.

The constituency contains over 575 communities, 222 of which are located on the Volta Lake. The district has 31 electoral districts and 127 polling places. 13 electoral districts and 54 polling stations are located on different islands.

Due to the character of the constituency, boats, canoes, and ferries are the only reliable modes of transportation. To reach Donkorkrom, the district capital, constituents must travel several kilometers on water and by road. Residents of Agordeke (Digya Island), for example, must travel by boat for 8 to 10 hours to reach the riverbank at Supom (Bridge Ano), and then proceed on the road for over 25 kilometers to the District Capital (Donkorkrom). You will be surprised to learn the following costs are involved: Abotoaso-Kpando=80; Kpando-Torkor=35; Kpando-Torkor=8; Ferry=12; River bank-Donkorkrom=20. Total expenditures equal GHC310.00

4.0 Repercussions of the EC's Voter Registration Procedures

If the EC continues with its current arrangements, this limited voter registration exercise will have practical implications.

To reach Donkorkrom, eligible voters, notably women and young people, who wish to exercise their Article 42 rights must travel several kilometers by water and road.
Those who cannot make the voyage in a single day must make lodging arrangements and depart only after they have been able to register. People will travel from all communities within the constituency to register, and those without a Ghana card will need to coordinate and possibly travel with two guarantors in order to register.
The preceding also implies that eligible registrants will be required to forgo school, employment, and other economic activities on the days they attempt to register.
It will also come at a high cost to eligible constituents, who will have to cover the expenses of transportation, lodging, and frequent incidents on the lake.
By its current decision, I believe the EU is denying those who are otherwise eligible to register the opportunity to do so.

As a member of Parliament, I am of the opinion that the EC's constitutional mandate must be carried out in a fair and reasonable fashion so as to facilitate and not impede the right to vote of citizens. In this regard, the Electoral Commission, in the execution of its mandate, should consider the unique challenges of constituencies such as AFRAM PLAINS in the impending voter registration exercise, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all strategy.

In previous elections, the EC utilized helicopters to disseminate election materials to these inaccessible island communities within the constituency. Therefore, the Commission is completely aware of the obstacles and how citizens will be negatively affected if the registration is conducted in the manner proposed by the Commission.

Nonetheless, if for some reason the Commission is constrained by a lack of human and logistical resources, it is the appropriate course of action for the Commission to come to Parliament and justify the need for resources to carry out its duties. I will be the first member of Congress to advocate for providing the Commission with the necessary resources to fulfill its constitutional mandate.

5.0 Discussion

Given the above challenges associated with the EC's registration modalities, I would like to appeal to the Electoral Commission through its chair, Jean Mensa, to urgently review the registration modalities for Afram Plains North, in consultation with the District Inter-Party Committee, by establishing registration centers on all islands to facilitate the registration of eligible voters. The deployment of mobile voter registration units, as the Commission did in 2020, is an additional option available to the Commission.

THANK YOU ALL FOR ATTENDING AND FOR YOUR TIME.