The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has directed all its members to boycott registration for the Ghana Card from the National Identification Authority (NIA).
A press release signed by General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketiah on Monday, 23 July 2018, explained that the Functional Executive Committee (FEC) at its meeting on Thursday, 12 July 2018, took a decision not to participate in the ongoing National Identification Card (Ghana Card) registration exercise until the party’s demand that the Voter’s ID card is included as one of the requirements for registration, is met.
The statement said: “The likelihood that the Ghana Card would be used as the major document for the compilation of a new voter register makes it all the more compelling for the inclusion of the current voter’s ID card as a requirement for the ongoing Ghana Card registration exercise since its coverage is more extensive and its validity more genuine.
“Party faithful throughout the country are, therefore, enjoined to boycott the Ghana Card registration exercise until the authorities yield to our demand and include the voter’s ID card as requirement”.
The statement further added that: “…All party executives at all levels of the party are to ensure that FEC’s directive spreads like wild fire throughout the country”.
Minority legislators have already boycotted the registration claiming the exercise will disenfranchise and de-nationalise several Ghanaians because only birth certificates and passports will be used as identification for registration.
They, therefore, did not participate. Only legislators from the Majority side making themselves available for the registration exercise when the NIA officials went to parliament to have legislators registered for the card.