Tema-Ghana, March 13, CDA Consult – The Ghana Federation of Labour (GFL) has disclosed that the Electoral Commission (EC) has dented the integrity of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration and the Passport Secretariat with the justification for the use of the Ghana Card as the sole document required for voter registration.
Mr. Abraham Koomson, GFL General Secretary explained that rating the Ghana Card higher than the Ghanaian passport undermines the sanctity of the passport and dents the integrity of the bodies responsible for the issuance of the passport – Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Passport secretariat.
He, therefore, called on the Minister of Foreign Affairs and head of the Passport Secretariat to purge their institution of the perception created by the EC that Ghanaian passport cannot be relied on or the process of acquiring it is floored.
Mr. Koomson made the statement at the Ghana News Agency Tema Industrial News Hub Boardroom Dialogue platform when reacting to the ongoing debate, and parliamentary discourse on continuous Voters Registration CI which has drawn divergent arguments from parliamentarians, political parties, civil society organizations, and the public.
The GFL General secretary stressed that EC cannot shift responsibility for the poor recruitment process to blame the sanctity of the Ghanaian Passport which is the major means of identification as a national of the state of Ghana.
“EC is running away from its responsibilities, Ghana cannot roll on using Ghana Card as the sole form of identification for the registration, we must reform through transparent and well-established means and not to derail the democratic development,” the GFL General secretary stated.
According to Organized Labour, the EC’s argument that it will prevent unqualified persons from influencing our elections and having a say as to who should govern our country is unfounded, “I dare EC to provide any evidence of any foreigner or minor on our voter’s register who participated in Election 2020”.
Mr. Koomson, therefore, cautioned EC against rushing to get its proposed Constitutional Instrument passed into law to avoid disenfranchising many eligible voters.
He said no one was against the use of the Ghana Card as a document for the acquisition of a voter’s ID card, but rather the rush to do so without recourse to its effect on the fundamental rights of the citizen.
He noted that the decision of the EC to rely on the Ghana Card as the main source of identification for those who wish to register as voters also discredit the Ghanaian passport which was used as a means for the guarantor system.
The GFL General Secretary also discarded EC’s argument that using the Ghana Card as the sole means of identification will prevent foreigners and minors from getting onto our Voters’ Register, “the sanctity of the voters’ register is based on the integrity of the registration officials.
“The EC has been the sole body that recruits both temporal staffs supported by the permanent staff to undertake any electoral process. If there are flaws, the EC must be held accountable, using Ghana Card as the main source for identification for registration cannot cure any infractions in the registration process”.
