The Commission has received its certified copy of the Supreme Court judgment in the case of “Abu Ramadan & Evans Nimako vrs The Electoral Commission & Attorney General”.
The Commission has taken note of the Court’s orders regarding the cleaning of the existing Biometric Voters Register. We wish to assure the general public that prior to the ruling by the Supreme Court, the Commission had discussed the roadmap for cleaning the register with the political parties at the Inter-Party Advisory Committee meeting held on Friday March 18, 2016. At that meeting, it was agreed as follows and subject to the then pending Supreme Court ruling:
1. That the audit process as outlined by the Commission, was inclusive, transparent, and within the remit of the law.
2. That the audit of the Biometric Voter’s Register will take place during the scheduled exhibition period after the limited Voter Registration exercise.
3. That the audit will involve removal of deceased registered voters, removal of multiple registrations (with the help of the AFIS software), removal of alleged minors and non-Ghanaians based on the production of evidence.
4. That in accordance with the provisions of C.I. 91, Registered Voters will be given the opportunity to verify their registration details at all polling centres nationwide.
5. That the Commission will use the Biometric Verification devices during the exhibition period for verification of registered voters.
However, in the light of the recent Supreme Court ruling, the Commission is studying the judgement and its implications on the audit mechanisms outlined above and the implications for registered voters who registered with National Health Insurance Cards. The Commission will make its views on the matter known in due course.
The Commission reiterates its respect for the Apex Court and its commitment to continue to abide with the laws of Ghana and the rulings of the Supreme Court.
Further, the Commission believes that the credibility of elections depends on a clean voters register. Therefore all steps will be taken in line with existing law to ensure that the final register is clean and credible before the general elections on November 7.
Meanwhile, in furtherance of its commitment to transparency, the Commission has published the full judgment of the Supreme Court on its website at: www.ec.gov.gh.
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