The Editor-In-Chief of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper has argued that there is no need for an independent audit of the new Voters’ register.
Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Jnr said the call by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) aligns with its earlier suspicions of the Electoral Commission (EC).
He said the Commission is an independent body mandated by law to compile the register thus there is no point calling another independent body to over see their work.
The Electoral Commission (EC) has admitted there are minors and foreigners among the 16.9 million persons it has so far registered to vote on December 7.
This revelation has sparked debates over the credibility of the new register.
However, the commission insisted the roll is credible despite these discrepancies.
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has called for an independent audit of the newly compiled voters register in relation to multiple registrations.
The party’s Director of Elections, Elvis Afriyie Ankrah believes that this move will make it more trustworthy, alleging that the Electoral Commission and the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) are working together to derail Ghana’s democratic process.
“As we speak, do we have a legal regime relative to scrutinise the register? If they are so concerned and they know what they are doing, they know where to go.
“Otherwise, we have processes that when they are combined and properly managed and activated can address their concerns but to ask for an independent audit by the audit body is just recycling this element of suspicion,” he said
But speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile Saturday, Mr Baako debunked the claims which they deem as reason enough to audit the register.
“What do they want the independent auditor to do that the existing laws cannot do?” he quizzed.
These comments were part of his submission on whether the voters’ registration exercise was worth the time and resources of the country.
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Source: JoyOnline