Politics of Thursday, 16 April 2020
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
Special Aide to Former President John Dramani Mahama, Joyce Bawah Mogtari has added her voice to the ongoing discussions on the compilation of a new Voters' Register in the face of a deadly enemy; the Coronavirus.
Ghana currently has some 641 cases of the coronavirus with 83 recoveries and 8 deaths.
In view of this, Joyce Bawah Mogtari took to social media to air her views.
Focus, she says, should be on the fight against the novel Coronavirus pandemic and rising questions and concerns about a possible total lockdown amidst rising numbers of confirmed cases, rather than issues regarding the compilation of a new voters' register by the Electoral Commission ahead of the December polls.
“Talk about the EC’s new voters register vis-à-vis the fight against Coronavirus! Can we focus on beating the novel Coronavirus pandemic, to lockdown the entire country or not, that is the question. #stayhome”.
Her comments come on the back of talks about the EC’s compilation amidst the coronavirus.
The EC had scheduled April 18 as the date for the registration of the new voters' register but due to the fight against the novel coronavirus, partial lockdown in Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi and the president's order banning social gatherings, the EC has suspended the registration until further notice.
Last month the Electoral Commission of Ghana was compelled to withdraw a Constitutional Instrument (CI) it laid before parliament.
The CI which was expected to give legal backing to the commission to compile a new register had defects which were highlighted at a meeting between the EC and the Subsidiary Legislation Committee of Parliament on Thursday.
Consequently, the commission was compelled to withdraw the CI and lay a new one.
Questions have since emerged about the upcoming December polls and the likelihood of its happening There are also concerns about the legalities involved as far as leadership of the country beyond 2020 without an election is.
Talk about the EC’s new voters register vis-a-vis the fight against Coronavirus!
— Joyce Bawah Mogtari (@joyce_bawah) April 16, 2020
Can we focus on beating the novel Coronavirus pandemic,to lockdown the entire country or not, that is the question#stayathome