Chaotic Voter Registration Exercise Draining MPs Financially – Zanetor

The Member of Parliament for Korle Klottey, Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, has expressed concerns about the ongoing limited voter registration exercise by the Electoral Commission (EC), saying it is draining MPs financially.

She also described the process as chaotic due to the large number of districts being served by a single location at the EC headquarters in Accra.

Agyeman-Rawlings made the remarks during a visit to the EC head office with former President John Mahama to assess the exercise.

“It’s a bit chaotic, because we have so many districts here, unfortunately, some machines keep going offline, making the process drag off a bit,” she said. “There’s a lot going on, things are difficult, and you are trying to convince people to do their citizenry duty, which is to get registered. You want to make sure that the process is easy and not so stressful, and not for people to come to wait here all day.”

Agyeman-Rawlings also noted that the current system is financially draining for MPs, who are providing transportation and other support to constituents who need to register.

“Lots of people, who are here, live from hand to mouth. Any moment they sit here is money potentially they can make in a day. We need to make the process a little smoother. I’m not quite sure what the EC is going to do about this situation. We have too many districts and one location, which is making it very stressful for lots of those who are here.”

Asked if the exercise was having a financial toll on MPs, she said, “It’s the case across the board and it’s one of the things why we were not in favour of the limited registration exercise being done in this form.”

Agyeman-Rawlings urged the EC to decentralize the registration exercise and provide more resources to ensure a smooth and efficient process.

The EC on Tuesday began the voter registration exercise at its district offices across the country to enable individuals who have attained the age of 18 to acquire voter identity cards for the upcoming polls.