The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has warned that it will not allow minors below the age of 18 who have succeeded in registering and receiving voters' ID cards in the on-going voter registration exercise to vote on December 7.
"If it is established that they are minors, what do you think we would be doing if we allow them to vote? If they are minors the law does not allow them to vote so why should they be allowed to vote? We would never allow any minor to vote'", NPP General Secretary, Nana Ohene Ntow said at a press couference in Accra on Tuesday.
The NPP said it had compiled a list of all the minors that had been reportedly registered and that the party would use the compiled list to prevent them from voting if it is established that they are truly under-aged.
A member of the NPP Campaign Team, Kwabena Agyepong added, "We would take the list of all the minors that had been challenged during the registration exercise because we know the areas and the polling stations they belong to. We have identified them and we know them. We want to warn the parents of these minors to be very wary because when they are found out they would be liable. It is a criminal offence for minors to vote and the NPP would not allow it to happen."
The NPP National Campaign Director, Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku said his party has had reports of someone who allegedly worked for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and had attempted to insert a list of already registered voters into the new register that was being compiled. Luckily the person has been arrested by the police and investigations are on-going.
"We want to take this opportunity to admonish any Ghanaian that is below the age of 18 that would allow him/herself to be used through this process. We want to warn them to go back and get their names out of this process before they get into further trouble"', Dr. Apraku added.
Nana Ohene Ntow alleged that the NPP had reports that in Tamale and many parts of the Volta Region, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was organizing and supervising the registration of minors.
The NPP General Secretary called on the Police to take up the issue with a sense of urgency and high level of seriousness and investigate the reports of minors being registered, whether the complaint is coming from the NPP, NDC or any other quarters.
Nana Ohene Ntow said the NPP had received widespread reports of minors and non-Ghanaians being registered illegally in many parts of the country and in countless instances, the ruling party's agents were brutally assaulted when they challenged the legality of the said registrations.
"In Yaw Opare Krom in the Suaman constituency, the NDC Member of Parliament, Hon. S.N.K. Ackah got into open confrontation with our party agents when they requested for forms to challenge the citizenship of people who could neither speak any Ghanaian language nor had resided in the constituency but had been brought for registration by the MP.
"Also in Osei Kwadwokrom Yametwa and Kaase, all in the Bia Constituency, the NDC MP, Hon. Boampong, also brought a group of people who neither spoke any Ghanaian language nor had resided in the constituency to be registered. When the NPP agents challenged the eligibility of these people to register, the MP got into a violent confrontation with our agents," Mr. Ntow said.
The NPP condemned the violence that has characterized the registration exercise in many parts of the country and called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to extend the registration period, since not many people would be able to register during the stipulated period.
It also registered its displeasure at the non-availability of registration materials at some centres.
Source: Daily Guide
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