Soldiers Preventing NDC Agents From Registration Centers in Ashanti Region

The Ashanti Regional branch of the opposition National Democratic Congress NDC has accused the Ghana Armed Forces of interference and and intimidation of its agents in the ongoing voter registration exercise in the Ashanti Region.

The accredited NDC agents who were assigned at the Tepa SHS were denied access to the center by the military present.

The military according to the NDC, said they were acting on the orders from above to prevent any NDC person from the center.

This was contained in the release later Sunday to inform the general public of government’s intention to turn the country into military state.

Ashanti Regional NDC is there urging its members to remain calm as the leadership of the party will take any necessary steps to address the issue.

Below is the full statement:

We regret to make public that our registration agents accredited by the Electoral Commission to Tepa SHS in the Ahafo Ano North Constituency were physically prevented from undertaking their lawful duty by the Military.

It is important to state that the Tepa SHS as per the EC’s gazette has two registration centres and does not qualify to be used as a special registration centre according to the Electoral Commission’s own publication.

Again, the Electoral Commission in spite of the flagrant disregard for its own publication, deployed sixteen (16) BVRs to the Tepa SHS for registration.

Unfortunately, heavy Military officers were deployed by the state to the Tepa SHS and they prevented 14 of our agents from performing their lawful duties. Sadly, Not even our Regional party monitoring agent, Mr. Brogya Genfi, who has been duly accredited by the EC was granted access to the registration centres.

We were informed by the Military that they have been ordered to prevent all/any NDC official and agents from accessing the registration centres.

A meeting convened by the District Police Commander over this unlawful restraint of deserving participants by the Military where all stakeholders were present did not yield the required results because the Military was determined to execute the orders for which they were deployed.

It is sad that our country is turning into a Military State where all is done by the failed Akufo-Addo government to use the Military to unlawfully intimidate citizens for political gains.

In spite of these challenges, we encourage all Party members in the Ahafo Ano North Constituency to be resolute even in the face of extreme intimidation.

The NDC shall prevail.

Kwame Zu (Regional Secretary)

18/07/2020