ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
This policy decision introduced competition into our procurement and helped drive down prices.
Ultimately it ensured value for money in our procurement processes.
In due course, the Commission will make public a report showing the huge savings made as a result of this decision.
Covid 19 Items Mr.
Speaker, as you may be aware, we started the year without the slightest inclination of the COVID-19 virus.
As much as it took us unawares, we immediately put in place measures to procure COVID-19 Items to ensure the safety and security of our stakeholders.
Additionally, we put in place stringent COVID-19 protocols to help curb the spread of the virus.
The items procured and distributed include the following: Thermometer Guns Veronica Buckets Sanitizers Liquid Soap Tissue Paper We have distributed all these items to our regions and districts ahead of the election and we are confident that the protocols put in place and the materials procured will help curb the spread of the virus at all Polling Stations and Collation Centers throughout the country.
In addition, Mr.
Speaker, from Monday the Commission will roll out an extensive publicity drive aimed at educating the citizenry on how to vote and encouraging them to exercise their power.
We will also engage citizens on measures the Commission is putting in place to reduce/eliminate stakeholder risks at the various Polling Stations throughout the country.
As you may be aware, the Commission undertook a comprehensive publicity campaign during the Registration Exercise.
This contributed to the enthusiasm and high participation during the registration exercise.
We are confident that the education we deploy, ahead of the election, in major languages throughout the country will go a long way to shore up interest and lead to a high turnout on election day.
Special Officials named the COVID-19 Ambassadors will be deployed to all thirty-eight thousand, six hundred and twenty-two (38,622) Polling Stations throughout the country.
Their duty will be to enforce the Covid-19 protocols and ensure that the sufficient supply of COVID items to the Centers are put to effective use.
Biometric Verification Equipment Mr.
Speaker as you may be aware, the Commission has procured brand new Biometric Verification Devices for the Election to enhance the integrity and credibility of the polls.
As I speak, seventy-four thousand, eight hundred (74,800) brand new biometric verification devices are in country and are being prepared for the election.
It is expected that the enhanced features of the devices will speed up the verification process and go a long way to ensure that only persons whose biometric details are captured in our system vote on the Election Day.
It is important to note Mr.
Speaker that the device has a record of both fingerprints as well as the facial features of each unique individual.
As a result, in the event where an individual has lost the use of his/her fingers, the facial recognition feature will be employed to identify the voter.
We are confident that the use of both features will go a long way to enhance the integrity of the Polls.
Speaker, for the records, the Commission procured eight thousand (8,000) brand new Biometric Voters Registration kits ahead of the registration in July.
As you may have experienced, the kits worked efficiently and resulted in the speedy and accurate capturing of the biometric details of seventeen million and twenty-nine thousand, nine hundred and seventy-one (17,029,971).
Ghanaians across the length and breadth of the country.
Our staff reported a great improvement from the previous kits used.
Indeed, compared to the previous kits, the current kits are more robust, user friendly and perform more effectively than the previous Kits.
There were very few reports of breakdown of kits in the field.
Indeed, a good number of our Data Entry Clerks registered over two hundred and eighty (280) persons per kit per day as opposed to the past, where the highest registered was hundred (100) voters per kit per day.
All in all, the performance of the kits exceeded our expectation.
We are confident that the Biometric Verification Devices will function excellently on the Election Day.
Speaker, I am pleased to note the cost for the procurement of the Biometric Registration Kits and the Biometric Verification Devices is as follows: Biometric Registration Kits Number Budget Actual Eight Thousand (8,000) One Hundred and fifty eight million, eight hundred and forty four thousand, eight hundred and thirty two Ghana cedis (GH 158, 844, 832) One Hundred and fifty eight million, eight hundred and forty four thousand, eight hundred and thirty two Ghana cedis (GH 158, 844, 832) Biometric Verification Devices Number Budget Actual Balance Seventy four thousand, eight hundred (74,800) One hundred and sixty one million, two hundred and thirty four thousand and fifty five Ghana Cedis (GH 161,234,055) One hundred and fifty one million, one hundred and eighty four thousand, six hundred and eighty five Ghana Cedis (GH 151, 184, 685) Ten million and forty nine thousand, three hundred and seventy Ghana Cedis (GH 10, 049, 370) S oftware for Registration Data Processing Verification Number Budget Actual Balance 1.
Twenty eight million, seven hundred and six thousand, nine hundred and sixty Ghana Cedis (GH 28, 786, 960) Eighteen million, six hundred and ninety three thousand and seventy four Ghana Cedis (GH 18, 693, 074) Ten million and ninety three thousand, eight hundred and eighty six Ghana Cedis (GH 10,093,886) Data Centre And Disaster Recovery Centre Number Budget Actual Balance 1.
Thirty-five million, seven hundred and thirty eight thousand, eight hundred and forty four Ghana Cedis twenty pesewas (GH 35, 738, 844.20) Twenty-one million, and eleven thousand, three hundred and fifty two Ghana Cedis, sixty one pesewas (GH 21, 011, 352.
61) Fourteen million, seven hundred and twenty-seven thousand, four hundred and ninety one Ghana Cedis, fifty nine pesewas (GH 14, 727, 491.59) 2020 Voters Register Mr.
Speaker as you may be aware, the Commission has prepared a new Biometric Voter’s Register in time for the election.
We are pleased to note that the register embodies unique individuals only.
To date the register has a total no of seventeen million and twenty-nine thousand, nine hundred and seventy-one (17,029,971) Voters.
We are confident in the credibility and integrity of the 2020 Voters Register and are pleased with the collaboration and cooperation of the citizenry at all levels particularly at the district level, as well as the magistrates, to ensure that only eligible Ghanaians participated in the process.
Speaker, as we speak, we have thirty-two thousand, six hundred and twenty-one (32,621) persons who have been placed on the multiples and the exceptions list.
Of these eighteen thousand, six hundred and nineteen (18, 619) persons engaged in multiple registration and fourteen thousand and two (14, 002) engaged in various illegal practices including under aged voting and voting by non-Ghanaians.
They are all on the list we call exceptions list.
It is important to correct an impression that the 18,619 names on the multiples list refers to individuals.
For the record, this number reflects the total number of multiple registrations, as such if a person has registered 10 times, all 10 instances will be on the list.
It is therefore not made up of 18,619 unique individuals but rather of multiple registrations Printing of Ballots Mr.
Speaker, the printing of ballots is currently underway in seven (7) printing houses in Accra, namely: – Buck Press Limited –Assembly Press (Ghana Publishing Company) –Fonstat Limited –Innolink –Yasarko Limited –Checkpoint Limited –Acts Commercial Limited A majority are printing houses which the Commission has used since the year 1992.
As I speak the Agents of the Political Parties and the Security Agencies are monitoring the processes in all the Printing Houses.
I am happy to report that printing of the Notice of Poll for the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections has been completed.
In terms of the Presidential ballots, the printing for the following Regions have been completed: PRESIDENTIAL PARLIAMENTARY Ashanti Region (Completed) Almost Done Volta Region (Completed) Done Western North (Completed) Almost Done Upper East Region (Completed) Done Upper West Region (Completed) Almost Done Bono Region (Completed) Almost Done Bono East Region (Completed) Almost Done Savannah Region (Completed) Almost Done Oti Region (Completed) Done Northern Region (Completed) Almost Done Western Region (Completed) Almost Done Ahafo Region (Completed) Almost Done Cental Region (Completed) Almost Done Greater Accra (Completed) Almost Done North East Region (Completed) Almost Done Eastern Region (Not Completed) Almost Done Mr.
Speaker, the printing of our 2020 Register is also currently underway and we are confident that we will complete this process and distribute the registers well in time for the December 2020 election.
Speaker, that the political parties have submitted their hard drives to the Commission.
A soft copy of the register was made available to them yesterday the 6 th of November 2020.
Printing of Pink Sheets.
Speaker, the printing of the Results Collation Sheet for Presidential and Parliamentary Elections popularly known as the Pink Sheets will commence on Sunday the 8 th of November 2020.
All Political Parties have been duly informed accordingly and will monitor the process throughout.
Recruitment and Training Mr.
Speaker the Commission has to date employed close to two hundred and thirty-three thousand, six hundred and thirty two (233,632) Temporary officials made up of Returning Officers and their Deputies, Presiding Officers, Verification Officers, Name Reference Officers as well as a Covid-19 Ambassadors for the December 2020 Elections.
A comprehensive training program has been drawn for each category of Officials.
We are confident that with the capacity building provided, our teams will be equipped with the requisite skills to enable them to perform excellently on Election Day.
Number of Polling Stations for Election 2020 Mr.
Speaker, for the 2020 Election, the Commission has created thirty-eight thousand, six hundred and twenty-two (38,622) Polling Stations across the country.
This is some five thousand (5,000) Polling Stations more than the 2019 Polling Stations.
The threshold set for the Polling Stations is seven hundred and forty-nine (749) Voters per Polling Stations.
It is important to note however that more than 70% of the Polling Stations have five hundred (500) Voters or less.
Security Mr.
Speaker we will like to end on the very important issue of security.
The Commission has since the beginning of the year engaged in continuous dialogue with the Security Agencies under the auspices of the National Security Task Force.
To date, we have provided them with relevant information to assist them in carrying out their duties on Election Day.
This includes information on all Polling Centers, Collation Centers, potential flash point areas among others.
This collaboration goes down to the regional and district levels.
We intend to increase our engagement as we head towards the elections in December.
Mr Speaker, in a nutshell this is our roadmap for a peaceful, credible and transparent Election in December.
I assure you and this August House that we are fully prepared and ready for the elections in December and are working with our teams to ensure that the election is Credible, Fair, Seamless, Transparent and Peaceful.
On behalf of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, we thank you for inviting us this morning to present our roadmap to this August House.
We look forward to returning next year to brief you and the Honourable Members of the successful, excellent, seamless, transparent and peaceful conduct of Election 2020, so help us God.
May God bless our homeland Ghana and make our Nation Great and Strong.
LET PEACE REIGN.
Thank you all for your attention
Good Morning Commissioners, Directors, Staff and Friends from the Media.
It is a pleasure to welcome you to the Electoral Commission today.
This is the day the Lord has made and we rejoice and we are glad in it.
The purpose of our gathering here this morning is to outdoor the maiden edition of our initiative dubbed “Let The Citizen Know"- Transparency and Accountability in motion”.
This initiative aims at providing the Commission the opportunity to engage with the citizens and inform them about our activities and processes from now till we close our doors to Election 2020.
This initiative will also enable us to receive feedback, answer questions, and address the concerns of the citizen.
As a Commission,we believe that the citizens should be informed about our processes&activities and the actions we take.
Since assuming office in 2018, we have endeavouredto bring the Commission to the doorstep of key stakeholders by informing them about our operations.
As you may recall we engaged and interacted with a variety of stakeholders including religious bodies, traditional authority and the media to name a few.
It is in this same spirit, that is, the spirit of Transparency and Accountability that we gathered here today.We believe that this platform will afford us the opportunity to provide timely information on a regular basis to the citizens.
We are confident that by so doing, we will demystify the operationsof the Commission and remove the cloaks of secrecy that had hitherto shrouded our work and processes.
We are keen to ensure that citizens are provided with the truth and facts as they unfold.
We are determined to open up our processes and promote transparency around our work.
It is our resolve to assure the citizen that there is nothing mysterious about our operations and to letthe citizens know that as sensitive our mandate is, the processes leading to elections are basic and mundane.
We are of the view that providing timely updates to the citizen will help build trust and confidence in the Commission.
This we hope, will help erase the tensions and suspicions that characterise our work and elections generally.
Distinguished Ladies and gentlemen, this initiative dubbed “Let The Citizen Know" aims to help us to achieve the objectives outlined above.
Through you, our dear friends in the Media, we intend to engage with the citizens twice a week, on Wednesday and Friday starting today.
Using the “Let The Citizen Know" Platform, we will provide the citizens with updates ranging from the number of persons who register per day nationwide, to details on male/female ratios, to the number of persons who use the guarantee system, number of persons who use a form of identification, to name a few.
To you, our media personnel here gathered, we consider you our bridge to the citizen.
You are our gateway to the public.
We hope and trust that you will be accountable to the citizenry by presenting them with the facts and evidence as they are laid bare here.
We trust that in carrying out your duties as seasoned journalists, you will put Ghana and no other entity first.
We have no doubt at all that you understand the times in which we find ourselves.
This is an election year and already the tensions and suspicions are high.
It is important that you present an objective reportage of what transpires here.
You have a responsibility not to use this platform for sensitization.
We (you and us)owe it to the citizens to present the facts and the truth as they unfold.
We view you as our partners in theenterprise of informing the citizens on the facts and truth.
We are in this together and the role we each play, will have a bearing on the future and destiny of our dear country Ghana.
At the end of the day, when all is said and done,we should each find ourselves on the side of Truth and Justice.
May God bless our Homeland Ghana and make our Nation great and strong.
Good evening distinguished citizens of our beloved country, Ghana, Members of the Press, Ladies and Gentlemen.
It is a pleasure to speak to you this evening.
I bring you warm greetings from the Electoral Commission of Ghana.
This is the day our Father God has made we rejoice and are glad in it.
It’s been a long journey and we thank God for bringing us this far.
Today marks an important day in our national calendar.
It is the day that precedes the commencement of our 2020 Voters Registration Exercise.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, on Thursday, 25 th June 2020, the Supreme Court gave its ruling in two cases brought against the Electoral Commission; one regarding the Commission’s intended compilation of a new Voters’ Register, and the other, regarding the Commission’s position that existing voter identification cards should not be included in the list of eligible documentation for the registration of voters.
The Supreme Court in its ruling, directed the Commission and all its stakeholders to comply with Articles 42 and 45 of the 1992 Constitution, and CI 126.
By this ruling, the Supreme Court granted the Electoral Commission the authority to carry on with the compilation of the new Voters’ Register using CI 126, and to exclude the existing Voter ID cards as identification for voters.
This ruling provides the Electoral Commission with the go ahead to commence the 2020 Voter Registration Exercise.
This exercise will begin tomorrow, 30 th June 2020 and will continue until 6 th of August 2020.
The registration of voters is a critical process in our election cycle.
The Voters’ Register is the bedrock on which credible elections rest.
It is the foundation upon which the sovereign right of a people to choose their national leaders is hinged.
Therefore, in carrying out the registration exercise, we, as a Commission, are mindful of the significance of the task we are undertaking.
We will like to assure you that, as a Commission, our rationale for compiling a new register, is not to disenfranchise any eligible voter.
On the contrary, it is to ensure that all our citizens who qualify are afforded the opportunity to register and cast their votes.
The Commission is of the view that only eligible citizens should be given the right to determine who governs and leads our dear country, and we are determined to ensure that no one is left behind.
We also deem it necessary to assure you that our decisions and actions are taken without fear or favour and without recourse to any individual or group of persons.
We have a duty to our citizens to ensure that it is only the will of the people that stands.
I urge all Ghanaians to move forward with the Commission in implementing the ruling of the court.
And indeed, this is the moment for us to move forward.
It is time for us to turn our energies towards the exercise of registering voters.
Let us all join hands together, notwithstanding our differences, to ensure that every desiring Ghanaian of 18 years and above is able to register as a voter, and that only Ghanaian citizens of 18 years and above are able to register as voters.
Dear citizens, your participation in, and monitoring of, the voters’ registration exercise will be critical to maintaining the integrity of the Register.
Please participate in the Voters Registration Exercise.
Monitor the process at your registration centre.
Draw the attention of the Commission to any anomalies you might observe in the process.
Together, we will arrive at a comprehensive and credible Voters Register.
The use of Guarantors in establishing one’s Identity I will now move on to an issue of importance to the voter registration process; that is the question of eligible documentation for proving one’s identity as a Ghanaian.
CI 126 speaks to this question.
CI 126 specifies the documents that each citizen of Ghana is required to present in order to be eligible to register as a voter.
The required documents are a valid passport, or a National Identification Card issued by the National Identification Authority.
CI 126 further specifies that in the event that a citizen of Ghana does not have either of the above documents, he or she must present two (2) guarantors, who must themselves have been registered under the current registration process, to vouch for, or guarantee, the identity of the said person, as a citizen of Ghana.
Some concerns have been raised about the use of guarantors.
We wish to acknowledge those concerns.
We understand that it may seem like a burden, having to find 2 registered persons to vouch for ones identity as a Ghanaian.
And yet, this seems to us to be the lesser of two evils.
Although it may take a little bit more of your time and that of your guarantors, it will ensure that only persons who are Ghanaians, and of age of 18 years and above, are listed on our Voters’ Register.
Guaranteeing of identity through the use of guarantors is actually not a novel phenomenon in Ghana’s voting procedures.
This system has been with us since the beginning of our democracy, as the framers of the law anticipated situations in which Ghanaian citizens might for legitimate and unavoidable reasons, be unable to produce documents to prove their citizenship.
May I crave your indulgence in presenting you with available data on the numbers of persons who have in the past been registered using guarantors as follows: In 2014, nine hundred and twenty-eight thousand, five hundred and forty (928, 540) persons were registered as voters.
Of this number, 82.2% of registering voters used guarantors.
In 2016, one million, forty-six thousand, and sixty-seven (1,460,067) persons were registered as voters.
Of this this number, 92.5% used guarantors In the continuous registration process in 2016, thirty-seven thousand, nine hundred and twenty-nine persons were registered.
Of this number, 93.1% used guarantors.
In the 2018 Referendum, forty-seven thousand, eight hundred and fifty-two (47,852) persons were registered.
99.5% used guarantors.
In 2019, one million, two hundred and eleven thousand, three hundred and ninety-five (1,211,395) persons were registered.
95.2% used guarantors .
As you will have observed from the above numbers, my predecessors have applied this system in past voter registration processes as they have sought to ensure that no one was disenfranchised for valid reasons beyond their control.
I hope that the 2020 Elections should be the last time that we as a country will need the guarantor system, as come 2024, all citizens should have been issued with National Identification Cards, and the process of applying for National ID cards should have become a routine procedure carried out at district and regional levels.
Covid19 and the Voters’ Registration Exercise As I mentioned earlier, the Voter’s Registration Exercise begins tomorrow.
It begins at a time when we, as a nation, have not yet beaten the Covid19 virus nor completely curtailed its spread.
The registration exercise will require the gathering of large numbers of people.
There is the risk of transmission and spread of the Covid19 virus at these gatherings.
We are aware that some of us would prefer that we wait for the end of the pandemic before carrying out processes such as this one.
Others believe that since the virus may linger into the long term, we must find ways to stay safe while engaging in our normal business.
The latter view seems largely to reflect the global approach to the question of when to resume normal economic and social life, but with each country adapting this approach to its circumstances.
As a Commission, we have paid close attention to signals from the government and our health experts, which suggest the latter approach.
We have in addition held discussions with the National Covid19 Team established by the Government, and with the Ghana Health Service.
We have taken their advice on best practice in curtailing the spread of the virus.
We have thus developed the following safety regiment to be carried out at all registration centres.
First andt, as has been our practice, all registration centres will be set up, outdoors, in open spaces.
Where schools, churches and other such venues are used as registration centres, we will not set up camp inside the school or church buildings.
Our registration centres will be set up in open fields and open spaces outside of the school and church buildings.
We will not use the school or church furniture.
We will use the EC’s furniture and set up for use as registration centres.