President Akufo-Addo has urged all Ghanaians to show up in their numbers to participate in the compilation of the new voters register irrespective of the political party affiliation as the Supreme Court has resolved all the issues surrounding the exercise.
In doing so, he said, it will allow only eligible Ghanaians elect the government of their choice come December 2020.
Speaking at his acclamation ceremony in Accra the president said, “Last Thursday, the Supreme Court presided over by the Chief Justice by unanimous decision, by a seven-member panel, settled all the issues surrounding the voters register and affirmed the right of the Electoral Commission to proceed with the compilation of the new register in accordance to the provisions of Constitutional Instrument C.1 126. The road has now been cleared for the EC to proceed.
“I am calling on every member and sympathizer of the NPP and indeed on all eligible Ghanaians no matter what party they belong to if any, to go out and register so they can exercise their civic responsibilities on 7th December 2020 to elect the government of their choice in a free and fair, peaceful and transparent elections.” He stressed.
On Thursdays, June 25, 2020, the Supreme Court of Ghana in a unanimous decision ordered the Electoral Commission to go ahead with the compilation of a new voters register.
According to the Apex Court, the EC is an independent body and will only be directed by the court if it acts contrary to law.
The decision comes after The National Democratic Congress in May, 2020 sued the Electoral Commission at the Supreme Court over its decision to compile of a new Voters’ register ahead of the 2020 elections.
The opposition party had stated their stand against the decision by the EC to compile a new voters register but the electoral body insisted that it will proceed with its decision.
The NDC, in the suit, was seeking an order to stop the EC from compiling a new voters’ register and an alternative order declaring as illegal the decision of the EC not to consider the old voter ID cards as a proof of citizenship for registering to vote.
Private citizen Mark Takyi-Banso was also seeking same reliefs as the NDC.
But the Apex court gave them a directive to make a choice on which of their two reliefs they wanted a decision on.
It is for this reason the NDC dropped the case which questions the power of the Electoral Commission to compile a new voters register.
The Supreme Court in a unanimous decision merged the two cases against the EC’s voters’ registration exercise.
The court however dismissed the case in a unanimous decision by the a 7 member panel presided by Justice Anin yeboah
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo