The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has announced plans to stage district-level demonstrations across the country, intensifying its protest against the Electoral Commission’s (EC) refusal to conduct a forensic audit of the voter register.
Abraham Amaliba, Director of Conflict Resolution for the NDC, revealed this decision on TV3’s Big Issue, stating:
“We will go to the district levels, we will demonstrate again at the district level.”
This move follows the EC’s rejection of the NDC’s petition for a forensic audit. In its response, the EC assured that:
“The Commission takes this opportunity to assure the NDC and the General Public that it has largely resolved all the discrepancies identified in the PVR [Provisional Voter Register]. The Commission achieved this in 2020 and will do it again in 2024.”
The EC invited the NDC to discussions, maintaining that: “As a Commission, we are of the view that the existing legal and administrative processes for cleaning the PVR have not been fully exhausted to justify the call for a Forensic Audit.”
The NDC organized a nationwide ‘Enough is enough’ demonstration on Tuesday, September 17, to press home their demand for an audit of the register. National Chair of NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, emphasized, “Our demand is simple… We want the EC to ensure a free, fair, and transparent election and a credible register is central to that goal.”
Asiedu Nketia stressed that democracy is under threat in Ghana, highlighting the importance of democratic-minded citizens fighting for their rights, “We want nothing but transparent elections that will guarantee our right to choose our leaders… Without the right of self-determination, democracy is good as gone, and every democracy at one point in time, comes under threat. Ghana’s democracy is under serious threat now, and we want to prevail.”
“We shall overcome… Elections alone do not guarantee democracy; it is democratic-minded citizens who are ready to fight for them who can guarantee democracy.” He stressed
The NDC’s district-level protests aim to pressure the EC to reconsider its stance on auditing the voter register. The party’s determination to ensure a credible register has sparked a national conversation on the importance of transparent elections.