Foreigners crossed the borders to Ghana to attempt voting in 2020 elections – Jean Mensah reveals

Foreigners were brought into Ghana across the borders in 2020 with the intention to vote in the General Elections, the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, ( EC), Jean Mensa has said.

“There is documentation that in 2020 foreigners were brought on board across the borders with the intention to vote in the General Elections. I myself saw a video of French nationals who could not speak any Ghanaian language ,” she said.

Addressing a news conference in Accra on Thursday, she said, “ we have evolved and our mandate is to ensure that the voters register is credible and by so doing, the intention is not to disenfranchise anybody.”

Prevention
Mrs Mensah said the EC is working to prevent foreigners and minors from enrolling onto the register. “Can you imagine foreigners and minors shaping the destiny of this country. In the past we’ve had very tight margins in elections so we must be committed as a country to work towards ensuring that only those who qualify are on the roll.“

No more guarantor system
Mrs Mensa disclosed that the Commission is not interested in continuing the guarantor system, which she said has outlived its usefulness hence the decision to adopt the Ghana Card as the sole identification document to vote.

She further explained that the use of Ghana Card is the surest way to ensure the integrity of Ghana’s electoral roll. “As a commission that is determined to conduct credible, transparent, fair and peaceful elections, we were keen to establish and uphold the integrity of the foundational document which is the voters’ register, hence our proposal to use the Ghana Card as the sole document for identification of a person’s citizenship and or age.”