NPP is confused about voter validation claim – NDC

Director of Elections of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo says the leadership of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) is confused in its claim that the V.C.R.C Committee recommended a voter validation process.

He said officials of NPP are aware that the roadmap of the Electoral Commission (EC) for the November 2016 polls has nothing to do with voter validation but the party has refused to admit that to the public.

Mr. Ofosu-Ampofo was speaking in the wake of a fight-back by a member of the V.C.R.C Committee, Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante who disclosed to Joy News that the EC’s Committee did not suggest a voter validation process in its report as peddled by the NPP.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Top Story program, Mr. Ofosu-Ampofo said because in Ghana there is what he described as a voluntary registration for voters, undertaking any form of voter validation exercise would not be ideal.

He added that the exhibition process will be able to achieve the same results the NPP and its pro-pressure groups have been campaigning for.

Explaining the difference between a voluntary and involuntary voter registration processes, he said in jurisdictions where voters are directed by law to register, a failure to do so will attract some sanctions. And after the registration, an opportunity is then given to registrants to confirm their names, which is then followed by the compilation of a new voters register for the election.

In the case of Ghana, he disclosed, the situation is different because the registration exercise undertaken by the EC is voluntary requiring people to willingly walk to registration centers to register adding their failure to do so will not attract any form of punishment.

On the issue of ensuring the credibility of the voters’ register, Mr. Ofosu-Ampofo said the Commission will be giving an opportunity to Ghanaians to go and check their names during the voter exhibition exercise.

This, according to him will serve as a platform to address issues of typographical errors with regards to names of people.

Deputy General Secretary of the NPP, Obiri Boahene said the argument about voter validation and exhibition does not matter so long as the register is cleaned.

“All of us are looking for a clean voters’ register”, he said adding no matter what is said in the Committee’s report, it is a matter of semantics.