CATHOLIC BISHOPS FAVOUR NEW REGISTER

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference says the Electoral Commission (EC) should take urgent steps to investigate the allegations that about 76,000 persons from neighbouring countries have their names in the Biometric Voters Register.

“The allegations of over 76,000 names of persons from neighbouring countries discovered in the current register must be investigated and the proper process be conducted if the allegations are found to be true.  If this and other allegations are found to be true, it will be necessary to have a new voters register to enable people to have confidence in the electoral process,” the Bishops said.

A news release signed by Most Rev. Joseph Osei-Bonsu, President of the Conference who doubles as Bishop of Konongo-Mampong said “to inspire confidence and credibility in the voters register, as we prepare for the 2016 general election, it is crucial that the register should be comprehensive, accurate and continuously updated.”

Additional Element

The Bishops said they believed that the register “is not just one additional element to the electoral process,” adding “it is in fact a crucial factor in the establishment and consolidation of a democratic system of governance.”

According to the Bishops, the EC together with the political parties as well as stakeholders should jointly guarantee and safeguard the process of registering persons qualified for voting for the 2016 general election and urged the commission to endeavor “to register all citizens of Ghana who have attained 18 years and above and are of sound mind, resident or ordinarily resident in an electoral area and not prohibited from registering as a voter.”

They commended the EC’s call on the parties to submit their proposals on the register and added that “It is our hope and prayer that all stakeholders but, most especially, political parties that have been contacted to present inputs into the exercise, will be honest and truthful in their contributions in order to enable the EC to conduct a fair, transparent and honest exercise to win the confidence of the Ghanaian public in the register and the electoral process as a whole.”

EC’s Efforts

“We are aware of some efforts being made by the Electoral Commission to ensure that the voters register is credible enough for the 2016 general election and pray that these efforts will yield the desired results,” they said.

“In the process of updating the voters register, the Electoral Commission must not disregard the calls to avoid the registration of minors and non-Ghanaian citizens, to use qualified and adequately trained personnel for the registration process and to ensure transparent identification and verification of eligible and registered voters.”

The Bishops said the government should provide the EC with resources to be able to produce a credible register for election 2016.

They also called for resources for the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) to enable them to educate  the citizenry on who qualifies to vote, saying “this education must be sustained throughout the year so that the message sinks into everybody.”

“The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference believes that the time has come for all of us to work conscientiously to satisfy the need to strike the right balance to ensure integrity of the voters register and the need for flexibility to ensure that the peoples’ right to register and vote is safeguarded.”