NPP, NDC argue over voters registration challenges

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti Region has accused the National Democratic Congress (NDC) of deliberately frustrating people from registering in some parts of the region in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise.

The exercise, which began across the country at the EC’s district offices and in over 1,000 additional centres, was largely peaceful, except for some instances of network challenges.

But the NPP in the Ashanti Region says some NDC agents deliberately delayed the registration process by raising needless disagreements.
Speaking to Citi News, the Ashanti Regional Organizer for the NPP, Francis Adumako, said “I visited the [centre] in Asokwa. If you have 10 people coming to register, out of the 10 people who come to register, for seven of them, he will throw a challenge for basically no specific reason.”

But the NDC’s Ashanti Regional Secretary, Kwame Zu, claims that the accusations were baseless.

He said “that cannot be the case. How do you distinguish between those who are for the NDC and those who are potentially for the NPP?”

Kwame Zu said the problems arose because of the “numbers that had overwhelmed the registration centres.”

“One of the difficulties we have also had to grapple with is the Electoral Commission’s decision to switch from the VMS kit to the BMI kit,” he added.

A total of 1,573 electoral areas have been designated nationwide to cater for persons in hard-to-reach areas after complaints by the NDC.

The limited voters’ registration exercise took off on Monday and is expected to end on Sunday, July 7, 2019.

credit: citinewsroom.com