The provisional voter’s registration exhibition by the Electoral Commission ends today nationwide amidst fears of many eligible voters missing the opportunity to verify their details.
The exercise which started on November 3, 2023 across all 38,622 polling stations sought to assist prospective voters validate their details as captured in the register as well as make amendments where necessary in order to be eligible to vote in the upcoming District Level Elections (DLE) and the general elections come 2024.
However, the exercise has witnessed low patronage since it begun reinforcing perceptions of voter apathy as the elections draw close.
During a visit by the Ghanaian Times to some exhibition centres in Accra yesterday, officers complained of low interest in the public towards the exercise.
One of the officers, Francisca Kwakye at Bubiashie Pentecost polling centre in the Okaikwei South Constituency said that out of the 508 voters, only 69 people had showed up to check their details.
She blamed the situation on lack of public education on the exercise, noting that “since we started there have been questions from the residents asking why we have mounted a desk, so we had to explain to them about the exercise.”
At the Azumah Nelson Sports Complex Centre, the situation was no different as officials indicated that out of the 532 eligible voters expected, only 12 voters had verified their details as of 11:39am when the paper visited.
They noted that the low public interest in the exercise was unhealthy for the country’s democracy and called on the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and other stakeholders to intensify education on such exercises subsequently.
While 12 out of 250 prospective voters had checked their details as at 11:58 am at the JVC (1) in Okaikwei South, Bubiashie, only 45 out of 675 people had done same at the Sackey Addo Secretariat School in the Korle-Klottey Municipal Area.
The EC on November 3, 2023 opened the 2020 and 2023 voter’s registers at all polling stations across the country as part of processes leading to securing a credible voters register for the 2024 general elections.
The public are to verify their names, sex and age as well confirm their polling stations where they will vote.
The exhibition exercise started at 7a.m to 6:00 p.m. each day throughout the period of the exercise.
During the exhibition, requests like inclusion of omitted names, objection to names of unqualified voters on the register, removal of names of deceased voters from the register, replacement of poor quality or damaged Voter ID cards, could be made.
BY CYNTHIA ASAMPANA & AGNES OWUSU