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General News of Thursday, March 28, 2019
Source: Myjoyonline.com
2019-03-28
Asiedu Nketiah is NDC Secretary General
According to the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the Inter-party Advisory Committee (IPAC) has not discussed issues relating to the establishment of a new voters register.
In a statement released Thursday, the NDC said that a statement issued Wednesday by the Electoral Commission (EC) gave the impression that the issue had been discussed.
"We wish to state with force and without fear of contradiction that no decision has been taken on this subject. In fact, the constitution of a new electoral register was only mentioned while going through the EC during the discussion on limited registrations, "wrote the NDC.
"The NDC believes that a subject as important as the establishment of a new electoral register should be discussed in such a way as to ensure that each aspect and the implications of its implementation are discussed in depth to the satisfaction of the NDC. of all stakeholders and in accordance with the procedure, the rules, procedures and conventions that have been tried before a decision is taken, "the statement added.
The statement, signed by the Secretary General, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, further added that the EC should "take into account its core mandate to act as a credible impartial arbitrator in the country's electoral processes and to respect the rules".
Read the full statement below:
NDC DEMANDS WITHDRAWAL OF IPAC DECEPTIVE RELEASE
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) notes with concern the statement issued by the Electoral Commission at the end of the IPAC meeting held on Wednesday, March 27, 2019.
At the meeting in question, the EC presented for discussion its planned activities for 2019. While the press release issued by EC covers aspects of the discussions that followed, we note that some parts do not really reflect what is 39, was pbaded at the meeting of the IPAC.
We take particular note of part of the EC press release which reads as follows:
"The Commission will establish a new register of voters before the presidential and legislative elections of 2020".
We wish to state categorically and without fear of contradiction that no decision has been taken on this subject. In fact, the constitution of a new electoral register was mentioned in pbading only by the EC during the discussion on limited enrollments. There has certainly been no "thorough deliberation" on this particular issue.
The absurdity of such an badertion is clear from the Commission's statement, which summarized the work program as follows;
* Preparation of 2019 elections at district level * Inspection of political party offices * Updates on political party compliance with audit requirements.
The establishment of a new register of electors not being part of the items on the agenda of the discussion, so it can not justify any basis for a decision of the political parties. A careful badysis of the following points in the statement, in particular points 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6, shows that all the issues raised were clearly in line with the items on the agenda.
It goes without saying, and judging by the flow of the press release and its links with the agenda above, point 3 is totally incongruous with respect to the real issues discussed at the meeting, not to mention any decision taken on this subject.
The NDC is of the opinion that a subject as important as the establishment of a new electoral register should be discussed in order to ensure that every aspect and the implications of its implementation make the Purpose of a thorough discussion to the satisfaction of all stakeholders and in accordance with due process, rules, procedures and conventions proven before a decision is made. Such a delicate issue as such must be discussed in depth and all the consequences that follow from it must be considered before reaching a decision.
A decision of this nature has a significant impact on the credibility and integrity of our elections and must therefore be properly presented as part of an IPAC agenda, discussed comprehensively with all relevant stakeholders, before the EC can communicate such a MAJOR decision taken at an IPAC meeting meeting to the general public. No such issue was placed on the agenda and was not discussed in a comprehensive or exhaustive manner, as the EC wished in their communiqué.
Curiously, the communique was only signed by the president of the Commission and not by the representatives of the different political parties. Can the EC explain why this is so? CDN therefore dissociates itself from the communiqué and requests its withdrawal as it is not in line with the conclusions of the IPAC meeting.
You may notice that decisions were made that did not find a place in the release. One of these decisions was for the EC to decentralize the limited registration exercise to the electoral sector level in accordance with time-tested practice for all limited registration exercises since the beginning of the year. beginning of the fourth Republic.
The NDC recommends that the EC not lose sight of its fundamental mandate of playing the role of impartial and credible referee in the country's electoral processes and to respect the rules.
Sign
L & # 39; Hon. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah
Secretary General – NDC
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