EC puts on hold limited voter registration



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The chairman of the electoral commission, Jean Mensa

The chairman of the electoral commission, Jean Mensa

The Electoral Commission (EC) has suspended the next limited voter registration exercise following an injunction application filed in the Supreme Court in order to prevent the commission from filing an injunction. undertake the exercise.

The exercise, which was to take place from Friday, June 7 to Thursday, June 27 this year, will not run as planned.

According to the commission, a new date for the exercise would be announced.

In a statement signed by Ms. Sylvia Annoh of the Communications Directorate of the EC, she said: "The EC wishes to announce, for the information of the general public, that considering the filing of a request for 39; injunction to prevent the commission from holding the restricted registration exercise, scheduled from June 7 to 27, 2019, the next registration exercise was suspended until further notice. "

Context

Last month, the EC announced that it would undertake a limited registration exercise in all its district offices and some of the country's electoral zones.

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The exercise was to offer Ghanaians who had been 18 years since the last registration exercise, as well as those who, for whatever reason, never had the opportunity to register, to do so.

According to the EC, the exercise was part of its preparations for holding the 2019 elections at the district level and the referendum on the election of the heads of the metropolitan, municipal and municipal governments. District (MMDCE) scheduled for Tuesday, December 10, 2019.

contest

A few days after the EC announcement, a Ghanaian based in Daboya, Savannah region, Umar Ayuba, went to the Supreme Court to issue an injunction.

On May 23, 2019, the Applicant sued the EC and the Attorney General against the EC's decision to register electors online during their limited registration exercise on the grounds that the decision was not provided for by law .

Counsel for the applicant, Dr. Dominic A. Ayine, are expected to file the interlocutory injunction application on June 11, 2019.

affidavit

Ayuba, in his affidavit under oath, said that a serious matter was to be decided by the Supreme Court.

He stated that the balance of convenience favored the public interest, especially those who risked being deprived of their rights and punished by the limited online registration exercise if the EC were authorized to continue the registration exercise pending the final decision of the proceedings in court. .

He argued that irreparable harm would be caused to new voters in rural areas because it would act not only an electoral repression, but also discrimination, depriving them of their voting rights, because registration was a prerequisite for achieving their goals. its constitutional right to vote under Article 42 of Ghana's 1992 Constitution.

According to the complainant, it would be appropriate in the circumstances to leave the EC under review until the final determination of the issues raised in the merits of the appeal.

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