<<Print>>Chief Policy Analyst of the Ghana Institute for Public Policy Options (GIPPO), Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby has challenged the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to provide convincing proof that a compilation of a new voters register for a credible elections in 2016.
According to him, the evidence provided by the NPP that over 70,000 Togolese are on Ghana’s voters register was not convincing enough.
That notwithstanding, Dr Wereko-Brobby said there was the need for the Electoral Commission (EC) to investigate the claims by the NPP before taking a decision on whether or not the country needs a new voters register for the 2016 elections.
“What we need to do at this seminar is to investigate and assess the merits of the computing solutions that are being offered. Should we have a new register or a cleansed register,” he said.
Speaking at the two-day public forum on the voters register organised by the Electoral Commission, Dr Wereko-Brobby noted that every single voters register in the fourth republic has been bloated and that has benefitted both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the NPP.
“We have had new registers, we have had cleansed registers, the difference has been the same. They’ve led to bloated registers. So let’s be clear on what we define as credible. We need to investigate the integrity of the technical support and technical IT that the EC uses to assist its work.”
“We need to have credible evidence because we started to examine the allegations…but for us it was clear that…every experiment must have its own control,” he said.
Dr Wereko-Brobby further noted that, “if we are saying that there is an issue of infiltration of the Ghanaian register by citizens of who you have established are registered on other registers, I think it is incumbent on you to provide the proof and the proof does not come from saying believe me or trust me. The proof comes with convincing all of us in public if you can do so or at least to the EC who has been asked to investigate the matter that here’s the proof of what I’m saying.”
Avoiding a stance on the issue for a new voters register or not, Dr Wereko-Brobby said, “I am biased. I have made my views known but I’m not for a new register or an old one or a cleansed on yet.”
“Is our problem a bloated register for which case we would have declared null and void all previous elections in the fourth republic or is our concern to have something that we all have faith in which is the credibility issue?,” he asked.