Voter exhibition officers in the Suame Municipality of the Ashanti Region have raised concerns over the low turnout for the Electoral Commission’s ongoing voter register exhibition. The exhibition, which began on August 20, 2024, has seen minimal participation from the public, prompting calls for increased awareness.
A visit to several polling stations in the municipality revealed that none had recorded more than 100 participants by 1:00 PM on the second day of the exercise. At the Bishop Sarpong Catholic Church polling stations A & B, only 27 people verified their names on the first day. On the second day, as of 10:43 AM, polling station A had recorded just 6 participants, while polling station B had 7, making a total of 13.
Similarly, at the Anomagye Pole Ase Polling Station, 68 people participated on the first day, with the number dropping to 33 by 10:49 AM on the second day. The Anomangye M/A Basic polling stations also reported low numbers, with station A recording 10 participants and station B recording 22 on the first day. By 11:00 AM on the second day, only 11 people had turned up across both stations.
The Tarkwa M/A JHS polling center saw 30 people confirm their details on the first day, but only 2 had done so by 11:15 AM on the second day.
At the St. Joseph R/C JHS center 2, six people checked their names on the first day, with just one person doing so by 11:20 AM on the second day. The Tarkwa M/A Primary School polling station recorded 14 participants on the first day and only 6 by 1:00 PM on the second day.
This trend of low turnout was also observed in other regions across the country, including Greater Accra, Eastern, Bono, and others.
The Electoral Commission’s voter register exhibition, which runs from August 20 to 27, 2024, allows registered voters to verify their details, request corrections, object to entries, and remove the names of deceased individuals. However, registration officials attribute the low participation to a lack of publicity by the Electoral Commission.
Officials are urging political parties to engage more actively in the exhibition exercise to generate public interest, as the success of the exercise is crucial for ensuring an accurate voter register. Some officials believe the low turnout may also be due to the availability of a short code verification system introduced by the Electoral Commission, which allows voters to check their details online.
“We think the short code system is convenient, but we still encourage people to visit the polling stations in person to ensure all their details are correct,” one official stated.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
