Director of Elections of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Elvis Afriyie Ankrah has said that the Electoral Commission’s attempt to justify the reason to compile a new voter’s register is only making them look foolish which is gradually making them lose credibility.
According to him, the bases the EC is giving for the compilation of the new register is based on falsehood therefore it will be of good interest if they abolish the idea of compiling a new voter’s register.
Speaking on Citi TV’s Face to Face show, Elvis Afriyie Ankrah said the NDC will resist the idea of a new register as the party’s demonstration organised over the weekend is just phase one off their opposition.
“The fact that parliament has approved it doesn’t make it a bible or Quran, parliament has approved more serious things and have withdrawn it. It will be withdrawn because the foundation of everything is based on falsehood. If you build on falsehood it will collapse. The more they speak, the more foolish they will become, and they will lose total credibility. It is in their interest to stop this so that if they have credibility left, they will keep it because the institution itself has to be protected.”
“Where they are heading to, everyday their credibility is going down and the demonstration is just phase one” he said.
Mr Afriyie Ankrah noted that EC Deputy Commissioner, Dr Bossman Asare’s answer to whether political parties were engaged in a discussion on the new voters register during an interview on Point of View with Bernard Avle on Monday was one clear indication that the Commission wasn’t being truthful.
“A little knowledge is dangerous and yesterday Dr Bossman Asare demonstrated it. I’m sure he was briefed but he didn’t anticipate the follow-up questions and he ended up messing up himself. It was a disaster and I felt very very sorry for him.”
He said Dr Asare in an earlier interview had lied that political parties were engaged and consented to the new voter register but told Bernard Avle that none of the parties objected when the issue came up, so the EC assumed that was an approval.
“They are not being consistent, they are not being truthful and because they are not being truthful, by next week the narrative will change again,” he added.
The National Democratic Congress has been at the fore front of opposition to plans by the Electoral Commission to compile a new voter register for the 2020 general elections, alleging that compiling of the new register is a grand scheme to waste state resources.
The NDC has said they have a plan to ensure the compilation of the new register doesn’t succeed.
Part of it includes a nationwide demonstration which has already began.
But the EC insists that the compiling of the new register is necessary as the current register is bloated while the existing biometric system is outmoded and expensive to maintain hence the need to go in for a new one at a cheaper rate.
The Commission insists, its intention to compile a new register is without malice.
The Electoral Commission (EC) said it is ready to engage the various political parties, especially those opposing the decision, ahead of the national polls this year [2020].
