The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has assured Ghanaians that its upcoming protest will be devoid of violence.
According to the Deputy Director of Elections and IT for the party, Dr Rashid Tanko-Computer, the party is only seeking to express its views and will not resort to violence.
When asked on JoyFM’s Top Story whether the party could guarantee that the September 17 protest would be peaceful, he said, “Clearly, we have prepared ourselves for a massive demonstration on Tuesday because the Electoral Commission seems not to understand the enormity of the issue at stake.
“Why would we resort to violence? That is not the aim of the NDC. We are clearly going to have a peaceful demonstration across the country.”
For several weeks now, the NDC has raised concerns about some irregularities in the voter’s register, declaring a nationwide demonstration against the EC on September 17 following its refusal to accept an independent audit of the register.
The calls became louder after the EC admitted that some of its district officers had transferred votes illegally without recourse to the law, an anomaly the Commission says it has corrected and penalized the officers involved.
Among other issues related to the organisation of the election, the NDC’s National Chair, Mr Asiedu Nketiah, said the party has not received any updates on the progress of investigations regarding those arrested for stealing some Biometric Verification Devices (BVDs).
Despite the widespread publicity ahead of the event, Dr Tanko-Computer explained that the demonstration was meant to inform Ghanaians about their concerns.
He explained that the EC appears biased in its dealings.
Dr Tanko-Computer referenced a situation in 2016 when the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) opposed the electoral register. At that time, he said a committee was set up to address their concerns.
However, he questioned why the current matter, which he considers even more significant, is being swept under the carpet.
Source: myjoyonline.com
