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SAMUEL OFOSU Ampofo, Minister for Local Government and Rural Development has addressed two separate Easter conventions of the Church of Pentecost with the call on members of the church to fully participate in the ongoing biometric voter registration exercise. The minister, an elder of the Church of Pentecost, told the people at the Tema and Nungua conventions that they could only exercise their democratic right to vote and choose the leaders of the country if they were duly registered. Mr. Ofosu Ampofo, who is also the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Tema West constituency, further asked the people to come out in their numbers on the polling day to vote for candidates of their choice. However, the minister expressed serious concerns about the way the biometric registration exercise had been conducted so far, including delays and shortage of materials at polling centers. According to him, a polling centre he visited did not have registration kits for three days out of the 10 days allotted to a polling centre. He wondered if the three days lost would be added to such a polling center to enable Electoral Commission (EC) officials to register all the eligible voters in the area. �No machines have been sent to some areas for the past three days and I urge the EC to take immediate steps to address these challenges,� Mr. Ofosu Ampofo reiterated. Addressing these challenges, he observed, would help in averting chaos and conflicts on the day of election. The local government minister indicated he had directed all the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) to provide adequate shelter for EC officials and eligible voters to give them some comfort during the registration exercise. �I have also directed the MMDCEs to visit all the polling centers to provide shelter and protection for our mothers and the aged,� he added. Mr. Ofosu Ampofo took the opportunity to thank the church for its invaluable contribution to the development of the country. He called on the church to continuously pray for the peace and unity of the country so that Ghana would not be plunged into chaos after elections like some countries on the African continent. The minister also commended Mr. Siaw Agyepong, the boss of Zoomlion Company Limited, for his contribution to getting rid of filth in the country. He entreated members of the church to ensure environmental cleanliness at all times as �cleanliness is next to godliness.� In a brief sermon, the Tema area pastor of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle A. L. Ango appealed to Ghanaians to emulate the exemplary qualities of Jesus Christ by preaching peace and unity ahead of the elections. �I call on all Ghanaians to cultivate the spirit of forgiveness and preach peace. We should all preach peace in taxis, trotros, at lorry parks and in churches,� Apostle Ango urged.