The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to re-exhibit the 2024 voters register to correct numerous discrepancies uncovered during the recent voter exhibition exercise.

The NDC's Director of Elections and IT, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah made the call during an Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting on Friday, citing concerns over the integrity of the upcoming general election.

Dr. Boamah highlighted the NDC's analysis, which compared the 2023 voters register with the provisional 2024 register, revealing widespread errors.

“In this meeting, we seek to share with you our observations so far, from comparing voters in the 2023 register with the 2024 provisional register,” he stated.

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He further emphasised that the party aimed to elicit honest answers about the root causes of the unprecedented anomalies observed during the exhibition.

The NDC has requested a forensic audit of the 2020, 2023, and 2024 voters registers to identify the source of the issues. Dr. Boamah explained the need for a comprehensive audit, stating,

“The reason for widening the scope to include pre-2024 registers is anchored in the possibility that some of the anomalies could be traced to the parent document in 2020.”

The EC released the provisional voters register as part of the one-week public exhibition of the register from August 20 to 27, 2024. 

The NDC is advocating for another 5-day re-exhibition of the register after the forensic audit, allowing voters another opportunity to verify their information.

Dr. Boamah emphasised that the party's goal is to ensure the credibility and integrity of the upcoming December 7, 2024, elections.

"Given the EC’s admission of mistakes and errors, an independent forensic audit of the voter
register to ensure transparency and confer credibility will restore trust in the EC. The forensic audit is also necessary because the Electoral Commission’s own internal directives to regional and district officers which we frequently intercept without fail points to the fact that there is massive discordance between data at the headquarters and data on the field."

He added that if a forensic audit could be avoided, they would have preferred that option.

However, under the current circumstances, he said, “a forensic audit is unavoidable and non-negotiable.”

The NDC believes that a forensic audit will address critical questions regarding the legality of voter transfers and discrepancies between data from the EC’s headquarters and regional offices.

Dr. Boamah noted that several EC officials admitted to errors, making an independent audit essential to restoring public confidence.

Find full statement below: