Low Budget Hampers Limited Voters’ Registration Expansion

The Electoral Commission (EC) has made it clear that it cannot expand the ongoing limited voter registration process to electoral areas due to inadequate budget.

Opposing political parties have requested the expansion of the registration process, but the EC denies allegations that it is attempting to disenfranchise voters.

The EC Commissioner, Jean A. Mensa, stated that it is not in their interest to disenfranchise eligible voters, but the EC’s present circumstances make the process impossible.

Mrs. Mensa revealed that the EC had prepared a draft CI for a continuous registration exercise in all district offices nationwide that began last year.

The CI foresaw a long-term sustained registration exercise, which would have given the EC six months to register voters at any time of their choosing in their district offices if passed.

However, the EC did not include the electoral area registration process in their budget, which led to the implementation of the registration exercise in the district offices of the EC nationwide.

The 2023 budget and work plan of the EC were based on the conscious registration exercise and not on a registration exercise on an electoral area basis, according to Mrs. Mensa.

She assured the public that the restriction of the registration process to district offices will not disenfranchise voters and that the EC plans to hold continuous registration in the district offices as well as mop-up exercises in hard-to-reach areas before the 2024 elections.

Finally, Mrs. Mensa urged the public to note that this will not be the only registration exercise held before the 2024 elections.