The Electoral Commission (EC) has downplayed calls for the suspension of the ongoing voter registration exercise due to the incidences of non-adherence to COVID-19 protocols.
The Acting Director of Public Affairs at the EC, Sylvia Annoh told Citi News that “the commission has no intention of stopping the process of registration.”
This is despite some medical observers warning of the downside of continuing with the registration, which has just entered its second week.
Some health professionals in the country wrote to the EC asking it to pause the ongoing voter registration exercise until safer ways of conducting the exercise are put in place.
The Founder of the Progressive People’s Party, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom, also urged the government to prioritise the health of citizens over the need to conduct elections
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This is because of the blatant lack of social distancing and other COVID-19 protocols observed at some registration centres.
The EC spokespersons acknowledged some of the concerns but assured that enough was being done to safeguard registration centres.
“We are not saying that when you get to the registration centre, there is nothing wrong with what is happening. The commission is making a conscious effort to ensure that the safety protocols are adhered to.”
She further insisted that in “most of our registration centres, the safety protocols are being adhered to.”
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The most recent update from the Ghana Health Service indicated a record 992 new COVID-19 cases in Ghana.
This pushed the country’s case count up to 21,077.
The number of discharges has increased to 16,070 while deaths have jumped to 129.
