No queues at special voting in Tema

Tema, Dec. 23, GNA - Polling stations in the Tema Metropolis designated for the special voting exercise ahead of the December 28, Presidential Election Runoff recorded a low turn out on Tuesday. The stations were extremely quite as the queues, that characterized the exercise on December 2 were missing. Security personnel from the Police, Ghana National Fire Service, Immigration Service; Ghana Armed Forces and Prisons as well as media personnel, who would be on duty on Sunday, December 28, were expected to cast their votes during the special voting.

As at 0915 hours, there were only 10 people, mostly made up of the Navy awaiting their turn at the Tema Community Centre Polling Station, which was serving personnel in the Kpone-Katamanso Constituency. Mr Dickson Klu, Returning Officer for the constituency, attributed the quiet nature of the exercise to the orderliness of the process, which he said was better than the previous exercise. He explained that polling assistants had a tough time locating names of personnel on the list during the December 2 exercise adding that the list had been put in the alphabetical order and thus making the process smooth and easy.

Mr Klu said to avoid soiling of the ballot papers, polling assistants wiped the excess ink off the index finger which the electorate dipped into the indelible ink. At the time of the visit two party agents for the NPP and the NDC were present and a total of 197 out of 400 voters on the register had cast their votes.

The situation was not different at the Community One Police Station for personnel in Tema East Constituency as the polling station had no long winding queues it experienced on December 7. Mr Eric Opei-Kumi, Returning Officer for the constituency, said a total of 157 out of 716 had cast their votes as at 0830 hours. He expressed disappointment at the low turn out but was happy about the incident-free exercise.

At the Community Two Police Barracks station 315 out of 939 eligible voters had cast their votes as at 1030 hours. Mr Isaac Asamoah, Presiding Officer of the station, said he was optimistic the electorate would turn out in their numbers to exercise their franchise in the course of the day. He expressed surprise that voter apathy had set in during the runoff.