EC to start compiling new voters’ register on April 18

The Electoral Commission (EC) will begin compiling a new voters’ register on Sunday, April 18, 2020, state publisher, Graphic reports.

The Commission intends to complete the exercise by May 30, 2020.

The Commission also expects to exhibit the new register from August 15 to August 28, 2020.

Confirming these, Deputy Chairperson of the EC in charge of Operations, Mr Samuel Tettey said the EC will deploy 8,000 registration devices to cover the 32,000 polling stations across the country.

He explained that the EC would use the cluster system for the registration, where four polling stations would form a cluster.

He said although the EC intended to spend 10 days at each cluster, mindful of the fact that the voting population in some polling stations was high, it might exceed the days at some polling stations to ensure that all eligible voters were registered.

Mr Tettey, according to Graphic, said after the 43-day registration period, the EC would provide a five-day mopping up period to take care of any exigencies.

The EC, meanwhile, says it remains committed to engaging all stakeholders in the lead-up to the December 2020 elections.

A stakeholder consultation is expected in the coming days between the EC’s Eminent Advisory Committee, political parties and civil society organisations who have expressed reservations with the new voters’ register.

The coalition of political parties led by the biggest opposition party, the NDC had staged two demonstrations, one in Tamale and the other in Kumasi.

The coalition maintains there is no need for a new register, arguing the current one is credible.

The EC, however, maintains it needs to replace the register in order to deliver a credible election. The Commission, among other factors, says biometric verification devices linked to the current register are worn out.

Source: Myjoyonline.com