NDC POLLS, NO VOTING IN EIGHT CONSTITUENCIES IN ASHANTI

Some of the voters going through the process at the PSUC

Voting in eight out of the 47 Constituencies in the Ashanti region in the Presidential and Parliamentary primaries of the ruling NDC has been rescheduled following some challenges that affected the start of the polls today, Saturday November 21. 

Voting in the Manhyia North and South, Subin and Atwima Nwabiagya North. The others are New Edubiase, Asante Akyem North and Bosomtwe could not take place today. 

The two Parliamentary candidates, Constituency Executives of the NDC and the EC officials unanimously agreed that the elections in the Ejisu Constituency also be rescheduled a tomorrow due to the late delivery and shortfalls in the voting materials.

That was after they had all earlier agreed for the EC officials to make coloured photocopies of the ballot papers of the Parliamentary elections.

 The number of the ballots provided was less by about one thousand 800 compared to the number of the eligible voting members on the register.

 The Ashanti Regional Director of the Electoral Commission, Paul Boateng told Ashanti Today that the EC was involved in the printing of the ballot papers but not the compilation and printing of the voting registers. 

Mr. Boateng noted that the Regional office of the Commission received the voting materials from the national office only at about 5am today thereby negatively affecting the distribution of the materials to the various Constituencies and voting Centres leading to delayed start of the voting in some of the centres.

 The Regional EC Director said the problem that ran through all those Constituencies was the inadequacies in the number of ballot papers and that the postponement of the exercise was to avoid conflicts among the key stakeholders.

 In all, 93 members of the party have put themselves up for the Parliamentary elections out of which 16 are contesting unopposed. 

There are one thousand, 741 Polling Centres with the total number of eligible party members expected to cast their votes standing at over 190 thousand. 

A visit to some of the voting centres suggested there could be a very low turnout considering the number of voters who had exercise their franchise at the time our Correspondent visited the Centres. 

For instance, at the Patasi Police Depot centre, as at 12.50 pm, only 32 out of the 199 members on the register had gone to vote.

 At the Public Services Union Centre, which had been relocated from another locality around 9 am, 38 of the 100 voters on the register had cast their ballots as at 1.30 pm. 

There possible low turnout could also be due to the inability of many members who could not find their particulars on the register. 

The elections were taking place under very peaceful atmosphere with all the candidates having their agents present to monitor the exercise.