Limited voter registration: EC officer arrested in Pusiga

The Electoral Commission has revealed that 17 persons have been registered with fake Ghana Card numbers in Pusiga in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise.

According to the EC in a statement on May 20, investigations revealed that the Ghana Card numbers were fake. It said its findings established that the Registration Officer failed to verify the cards physically and only accepted the numbers from party agents.

“Upon investigation, it was revealed that the Ghana Card numbers were fake. It was further discovered that the Registration Officer was complicit because he did not physically inspect the Ghana Card of individual applicants but rather accepted the fake numbers from Party Agents who had accompanied the 17 applicants.”

As a result, the Electoral Commission immediately dismissed the Registration Officer and reported the matter to the Police. Subsequently, the officer was arrested by the Police and later granted a Police enquiry bail as investigations continue.

Also, the EC noted that the affected applicants were later registered using the Guarantor System.

“The Registration Officer was dismissed. A report was made to the Police and he was arrested. He has since been granted a police enquiry bail while the Police continue with their investigations. The 17 Applicants were subsequently registered through the Guarantor System.”

Pusiga was recently in the news for foreigners’ involvement in the limited voter registration exercise. The NDC in the constituency accused the NPP’s Parliamentary Candidate of busing in Burkinabes to register.

Apart from Pusiga, two Togolese were arrested on Sunday at Buem when they attempted to register. The National Security officers who arrested the two said they were brought in by one political party to participate in the limited voter registration.