1 month ago
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The Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Mrs Jean Mensa, has announced the release of the revised provisional voters register for the upcoming 2024 general elections.
She explained that the EC had corrected discrepancies and removed anomalies from the register, ensuring all eligible voters registered in 2020, 2023, and 2024 were included.
Mrs Jean Mensa (second from left) in a discussion with Nana Ohene Ntow(second from right). With them are other dignitaries Photo: Victor A. Buxton
At the Inter Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting held yesterday in Accra, she said the revised register was available online, free of charge, and political parties had been provided with soft copies on hard drives.
She assured stakeholders, including political parties, that the EC had made significant progress in addressing issues identified during the initial exhibition of the register.
“We promised two weeks ago that we would take steps to clean the provisional register, and today, we are here to fulfil that promise,” Mrs Mensa said.
She said the political parties would also receive templates to document any discrepancies they find in the revised register.
This move, Mrs Mensa noted, was to allow a second opportunity for both voters and political parties to review and report any issues before the final voters register was compiled.
She said the EC was re-exhibiting the revised voters register, from yesterday to October 19, 2024, to allow voters to check their details once again.
This re-exhibition, Mrs Mensa said, was a suggestion from the National Democratic Congress (NDC), demonstrating the commission’s openness to feedback and collaboration.
“The re-exhibition has never happened before. This shows that the EC is listening to its stakeholders and working to improve transparency,” Mrs Mensa asserted.
She urged all registered voters to take advantage of the opportunity and verify their details online or at the district offices.
Mrs Mensa added that after October 19, no further complaints would be accepted, though voters would still be able to check their details online.
“The EC has also released the total number of polling stations across the country, which stands at 40,975, including special polling stations,” she said.
Mrs Mensa informed political parties that they had been provided with the necessary information, such as the number of registered voters at each polling station and the ballot statistics.
“We have added a two per cent margin to the total number of ballot papers to ensure there are no shortages. EC is confident this measure will prevent any disruptions during the December election,” she stated.
As in 2020, voter turnout is not expected to reach 100 per cent, but Mrs Mensa said the extra margin should ensure there are enough ballots for all voters.
She also disclosed that ballot printing would begin on Thursday, October 17, 2024, using the updated voter statistics from the revised register, with a two per cent margin added to prevent ballot shortages.
“In 2020, we saw a 79 per cent voter turnout. While we encourage all voters to participate, we know not everyone will turn out on Election Day, but we are confident that the methodology we have used will ensure an adequate supply of ballot papers for the December elections,” she explained.
Mrs Mensa expressed gratitude for the stakeholder collaboration and encouraged all parties to continue their cooperation to achieve a smooth election process.
Head of Information Technology at the EC, Dr Yaw Ofori Adjei, said “We have a robust system in place to ensure that all discrepancies are corrected, and every eligible voter is accurately reflected on the register,” he said.
It would be recalled that the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) identified some errors of the provisional voters register, called for audit of the register and even embarked on a nationwide protest.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
