SHS Students Threaten To Boycott Voter Registration And Return To School Because Of Frustrations
- Some Senior High School students aged 18 and above have made threats over the delays in the voter registration process
- The voter registration process has been marred by technical challenges that have left patrons frustrated
- The commission aims to register approximately 623,000 first-time voters across the country
Some Senior High School (SHS) students eligible to vote are on the verge of giving up on getting a voter ID card.
Some students who spoke to Adom News are considering boycotting registration because of the delays.
Source: Getty Images
Widespread network challenges have brought on the delays the students have complained about.
Some of the students have appealed to the Electoral Commission to resolve the network issues.
Stephen Abuaku, the New Patriotic Party Chairman of the Nkawkaw constituency, acknowledged the network challenges but said that overall, the registration process was proceeding smoothly.
He also appealed to the Ghana Education Service to consider extending the four-day period given to the students.
The Ghana Education Service had permitted students to leave school to participate in the continuous voter registration exercise.
The ongoing EC registration exercise began on Tuesday, 7th May, and will conclude on 27th May.
The running mate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, also suggested the Electoral Commission extend the days for the limited voter registration exercise.
Opoku-Agyemang, who toured some registration centres in Accra, posted on Facebook that the EC must account for the lost hours.
Commission targets 623,000 new voters
The Electoral Commission hopes to register approximately 623,000 first-time voters across the country.
The commission's chairperson, Jean Mensa, said the officers have rented generators to account for power cuts.
She also revealed that her officers have an “offline” mode for voters to be registered manually if the generators fail.
EC replies to claim that 7 BVDs are stolen
YEN.com.gh reported that the Electoral Commission said none of its Biometric Verification Devices have been stolen, despite concerns by some observers.
Dr Bossman Asare, instead, revealed that five of the EC's laptops had been stolen, and the police are working to retrieve them.
He assured that the stolen laptops would not threaten the integrity of the general elections.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
