Charlotte Osei, EC Chairperson
The level of extreme political partisanship is sometimes bewildering to understand. Otherwise, why should the Supreme Court ruling that those who entered the voters register by means of the National Health Insurance identification cards should be dismissed as if nothing fundamental has occurred in our bid to deepen and entrench the rule of law.
More important, why should the Electoral Commission, which has been struggling to deal with the issue of minors on the spurious excuse that the commission on its own could not delete any name apart from those who registered more than once, publicly claim that it was doing exactly what the court has ordered it to do. Such comments do not build public trust and confidence and could suggest that such bodies do not respect the courts, especially coming from the highest court off the land.
No one can say all those who registered with the NHIS cards, as well as the minors on the register belong to one political party. That is why such legal decisions must be analysed objectively and in tune with constitutional democratic ethos rather than be seen in some narrow and myopic partisan shade.
I have since the ruling listened to discussions on radio, especially in Accra and Kumasi, and feel some of the political activists do not understand the implications of the comments they make. Yes, it is reasonable to argue that those affected cannot be blamed for what happened, but to suggest that the removal in itself does not mean anything is to demonstrate crass ignorance about the issue.
Beyond everything is the matter of the authority of the courts is how our country is governed.
It must be a lesson to all of us, especially Parliament, where sometimes due to sycophantic partisan support, members who otherwise are professionals to the core canvass for the subversion of order because of political convenience. They must be told that if they do not follow established procedures in the discharge of their obligations, their decisions could be overturned because we have taken the path of the rule of law.
Now the Supreme Court has spoken; the Electoral Commission could delete names of all manner of unqualified voters from the register, including minors. There is no more excuse to have minors retained on our electoral register because once their name enters the register they cannot be removed. It is not only those who register more than once who must forfeit their franchise.
All Ghanaians must hail the decision of the Supreme Court and we should not present the ruling as a victory or loss for any political party unless anyone wants to be associated with the dubious epitaph of being a fraud.
However, we must look at a bigger picture of developing effective and efficient plans to ensure that registration of voters can no longer divide us. This is important because in an electoral system where the appearance of the name of the voter on the electoral register is the means of qualification to exercise the franchise, that requires the register to be valid and accurate to eliminate fraud.
We can no longer toy with the National Identification Card system, that will clearly establish the identity of every Ghanaian and when they qualify to exercise their franchise. That way, the involvement of party activists in the election process would be less intrusive and antagonistic.
The limited registration to enrol new voters has just ended and we are still bereft of ideas to keep political party activists out of the exercise to enable us to have objective assessment of issues.
Yes, the usual acrimony that has bedevilled every registration exercise, accusations and counter-accusations of illegal and irregular acts either by activists of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) or the New Patriotic Party (NPP), with the concomitant innuendo of complicity by the Ghana Police Service are rife.
At the time that the Supreme Court has directed the Electoral Commission to delete the names of minors from the electoral register, we still hear of political parties attempting to get minors registered.
It is sad and betrays a certain want of sincerity among some of our political leaders. For as long as such fraud could be clothed and smeared on the NDC and NPP, instead of those who perpetrate the crime, we give the illegal practice a healthy and positive image.
Prof. Ernest Dumor established the architecture of the National Identification Authority. We could have benefited meaningfully from the programme if we had focused on it in the last eight years. We do not have to invent the wheel. We have to do what is right to produce credible voters’ registers without the involvement of fundamentalist and sycophantic party agents.