Prof Mike Oquaye
The registration of Ghanaians which was promised by the ruling government by the National Identity Authority (NIA) stoked controversy on the floor of the Parliament yesterday when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Sagnarigu, A.B.A. Fuseini described the whole national registration exercise as fraudulent.
A.B.A. Fuseini, the ranking member on Communications Committee of parliament, who was contributing to the 2018 budget on the floor of the House, said that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government promised to carry out the national registration exercise in the first year of assumption of office but the year has almost ended without any sign of the registration.
He said a new LI to the amendment of the National Identity Register called the National Identity Register (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which was laid in parliament about a week ago might not even mature before the end of the year.
“Mr Speaker, as we speak now the Vice President who launched the new registration exercise does not have his national ID card. Mr Speaker as you sit there you don’t have your ID card,” he said, adding that the whole exercise is a sham with only one ID card printed for the President as a way of propaganda by the government.
He said the Digital and Property Addressing system by the government is also another “fraud” on the people of the country, stressing that the Ministry of Communications would be constrained to carry out all its outlined programmes for next year since the budget for the ministry has drastically been cut.
He said the budget for the Flagstaff House is far more than budget of seven key ministries put together.
“It means the NPP government does not intend to bring any meaningful development to the people of the country,” he added.
A Deputy Minister for Communications, who is also the NPP MP for Dadekopon, Vincent Odotei Sowah, stood on a point of order and told the House that the ranking member on communication was misleading the House in his contributions to the debate on the NIA.
He later told the parliamentary press corps that the ranking member was not telling Ghanaians the truth.
According to the deputy minister, everything is on course for the roll-out of the exercise.
He explained that there had to be an amendment to the old National Identity Register Bill following the ruling by the Supreme Court that National Health Insurance Card and driving licences cannot be used as a proof of citizenship.
He pointed out that all the procurement processes had been completed and logistics meant for the take-off of the programme had been secured.
Parliament passed the Amendment to the National Identity Register Bill under a ‘certificate of urgency’ on Friday, November 24 with Members of Parliament from both sides of the House unanimous in agreeing to the position of the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs committee of parliament, which looked at the nitty-gritty of the bill that this particular bill needed to be passed under a ‘certificate of urgency’.
National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Banda, who is the deputy minority chief, Ahmed Ibrahim and NDC MP for Ellembele, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, said it was important to register all Ghanaians for proper planning and development purposes.
They said it was important to have such database to distinguish between Ghanaians and non-Ghanaians in the country and boost development.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr