By Ewoenam Kpodo
Tokor (V/R), Oct 03, GNA – The last day of the Electoral Commission (EC’s) limited voter registration exercise at the Ketu South Centre has turned chaotic resulting in exchanges of blows.
The fight between supporters of the two major political parties, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was caused by some disagreement following EC’s arrangement to issue numbers to eligible applicants in queue, who might not be captured by close of the day.
Few minutes to 1700 hours, Mr Kofi Sakyi Boampong, Ketu South Municipal EC Officer caused to be made for the long queue of applicants waiting to be registered, an announcement that those, who might not be attended to latest by 1805 hours would be issued with numbers to come the next day, Tuesday to be registered for their voter cards.
Initially, applicants reluctantly left the queue they were in to form a different one for chits, which were being numbered and stamped before being issued out.
In a short time, most applicants left the waiting queue to join the new one for the numbers to go back home and return the next day to continue with the process resulting in the anxious crowd clustering together causing confusion with some applicants accusing others of trying to jump the queue.
Some supporters of the NPP at this point felt that the NDC faithful at the centre were trying to smuggle people, who were not originally in any queue waiting for their turn to register by 1700 hours, (the official closing hour), to queue for the chits.
The NDC supporters did not allow applicants to be denied the chits that would make them register for their cards and in the process, a fight broke out but without any fatalities.
Before Police officers could come in to restore calm at the centre, the EC had issued the 134th number at the time the chaos died down a little around 1745hours.
Some applicants, who spoke to Ghana News Agency said they were unhappy with the turn of developments saying, the fracas would only prolong their waiting time lamenting that their only hope to register in the three-week process had been dashed.
Ms Sena Hekubor from Atiakrobor said after waiting for six hours without any signs of getting registered, thus, joining the queue for the number was the only hope that she would exercise her franchise nothing, even that was being disrupted.
Mr Samuel Doe Haligah, Ketu South Parliamentary aspirant for the NPP, blamed the EC for Monday’s chaos saying, it could have done better to forestall the chaos.
Mr Bright Kwaku Kumordzie, Constituency Chairman, Ketu South NDC lauded the arrangement for those in the queue by 1700 hours to be registered but rated the exercise as “so far, so bad.”
The EC on Tuesday, September 12, 2023, began a three-week limited voter registration exercise to register persons who have turned 18 years and above since the last registration in 2020 at its district offices nationwide – a departure from the old system where limited registration exercises were conducted at the electoral areas.
GNA