New register: EC’s C.I requires guarantors to swear oath – NDC MP

Potential voters who have neither passport nor the NIA cards will need their family members as guarantors before they could register in the upcoming voter’s registration exercise, that’s according to the C.I. 126 that gives legal backing to the Electoral Commission’s plans to compile a new register.

The C.I will also require that guarantors swear an oath before a commissioner of oath before they will be deemed legitimate.

Parliament’s Subsidiary Legislation Committee on Wednesday voted to approve the legislative instrument. Reports say twenty-one out of the 25 committee members who were present at the meeting voted 12-9 in favour of the controversial C. I.

Speaking to Francis Abban on the Morning Starr Thursday, a friend of the committee Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor said there will be major difficulties in getting commissioners of oath in the various registration centres.

“The guarantors EC speaks about, according to the C.I must be the individual’s family members. The primary focus is family members so if you don’t have family members you are in trouble. Again, the guarantor is supposed to swear an oath. So the commissioners of Oath must be there to swear an individual in and there is no provision for that on the forms,” the South Dayi MP said.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will today make a ruling in a case filed against the EC’s decision to compile new register by the opposition NDC.

The NDC is seeking a “declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 45(a) of the 1992 Constitution, 2nd Defendant has the constitutional power to, and can, compile a register of voters only once, and thereafter revise it periodically, as may be determined by law.

“Accordingly, 2nd Defendant can only revise the existing register of voters, and lacks the power to prepare a fresh register of voters, for the conduct of the December 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections.”

Or in the alternative, “A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of the provisions of the Constitution, specifically article 51 read conjointly with article 42 of the Constitution, the power of the 2nd Defendant [EC] to compile and review the voters’ register must be exercised subject to respect for and the protection of the right to vote.”