Okaikoi North December 7 elections

Page 20 Monday December 8 2008
Jennifer Dornoo & Leticia Ohene-Asiedu report from the Okaikwei North constituency that as early as 1am, registered voters had already trooped to the polling stations awaiting the arrival of election officials and materials to cast their vote.
Some of the voters were seen lying on mats with others sitting on benches and plastic chairs as they waited for the electoral process to begin at 7am.
At the Happy Home School where voting started at 7:25am, a party agent who refused to disclose his identity said on arrival of the ballot boxes, the parliamentary box had two of its seals removed.
According to him, the two ballot seals bearing the codes 3113900 and 3113916 were removed from the box when it arrived leaving only one seal with the code 3113999.
He said this was a bit alarming since they could not find out whether the ballot box with the materials in it had been tempered with or not.
The party agent therefore said no explanation had been given to them as to the whereabouts of the two seals when the EC representatives were questioned.
Most of the electorates in the constituency were not satisfied with the work of the EC since they could not find their names in the register at the polling stations they registered.
At the Lapaz video centre, a voter Mr A. Ziguanty complained bitterly that he had been voting at that particular polling station since the year 2000 but was disappointed when he could not find his name in the register.
“I even checked my name in the voters register recently when the EC asked us to and I found my name. How could my name mysteriously vanish”, he said.
He said he had visited three other polling stations but could still not find his name.
At the Emmanuel Gospel Ministries, a lady who gave her name as Matilda was refused her right to vote because she wore an artificial nail.
She was later allowed to vote due to the intervention of some electorates who protested.
At the Alhaji Abass polling station, electoral materials arrived at the centre as late as 8:20am delaying the start of the electoral process which finally started at 9:30am.
At stations such as Four Square Gospel Church, the Apostolic Church of Ghana, Gospel Believers Outreach Church and the Christian Mission College electoral process started at exactly 7am with a peaceful and serene atmosphere.