The Tema Metropolitan Office of the Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) has advised prospective voters in the Metropolis to desist from queuing at dawn at its office in a bid to get registered in the ongoing limited registration exercise.
Nana Oduro Numapau, Tema Metropolitan Electoral Director, said some registrants were being transported to the office which is the registration centre for Tema East, West and Central, as early as 11 pm to queue.
Nana Numapau said this on Thursday when Mr Ishmael Ashitey, Greater Accra Regional Minister, accompanied by Mr Felix Mensah Nii Anang-La, Tema Metropolitan Chief Executive, visited the centre to find out how the exercise was progressing.
The limited registration exercise seek to enroll new voters who just turned 18 and those who are older but were unable to register in past exercises.
He indicated that the prospective voters were being transported to the centre by persons who wanted to vie for the upcoming District Assembly’s elections with the hope that when they get registered, they would return the favour by voting for them.
He added that some of them were even coaching under aged persons to falsify their ages to register, adding however that officials were able to detect those cheats and on two occasions called in the Police to effect arrest to serve as a deterrent.
He gave the assurance that measures had been put in place to ensure that every qualified person that reported to the centre would be registered by the close of work at 18:00 hours.
Nana Numapau explained that registration could not commence before 07:00 hours and after 18:00 hours since the machines were programmed to work only between those hours therefore queuing at dawn was unnecessary.
He stated that those who could not be registered the previous day were registered alongside new applicants saying they were able to register 738 persons on Wednesday compared to the 104 registered on the first day.
According to him, dedicated canopies had been set up with staff and machines for each of the three constituencies of Tema on the premise to reduce congestion and confusion.
The EC Metro Director said prospective registrants in the queue are usually educated about the requirements and implications of registering more than once.
The Regional Minster after the inspection expressed joy at the orderly nature of the queues and calm at the centre.
Mr Ashitey commended the EC for the peaceful exercise saying he would visit more centres in Accra to acquaint himself with what was happening in the Region.
He urged qualified persons to register to vote in the various elections saying their failure to do so would pave way for others to choose leaders they might not like to govern and formulate policies and laws for them.
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