Edudzi Tamakloe
Members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), who started a fresh campaign last week against the compilation of a new voters’ register using the deadly coronavirus (Covid-19) as a clear ruse, have quickly abandoned the project.
Their decision to stop the campaign followed unsavoury public reaction about what was regarded as ‘cheap politics’ for taking advantage of the unfortunate coronavirus as a way to scuttle the plans by the Electoral Commission (EC) to compile a new register.
No sooner had they unfurled the distasteful campaign on social media on Friday than they expunged the post immediately they were exposed by DAILY GUIDE.
Calculated Effort
The whole propaganda was started by one of the NDC’s leading figures, Edudzi Tamakloe, a lawyer, who posted on Facebook ‘educating’ the party on what he called, “When registering for new voters register: 10 possibilities that may occur; yet Akufo-Addo says it is sensible.”
Many who followed the post could not but express disgust at the outright political scheme against the compilation of a new voters’ register.
Fearing the backlash, the NDC man then removed the post from his timeline on Saturday.
NDC Ruse
The new ruse appeared to have come in handy for the NDC after exhausting their dices including demonstrations, open threats and the use of amenable civil society organizations to undertake advocacy campaigns for them.
Immediately the well-crafted propaganda was released, their numerous communicators started sharing it, seeking to scare the public from going to registration centres when the EC finally opens the process for the acquisition of new voters’ identity cards.
Rhetorical Question
Starting with a rhetorical question, they ask readers to judge for themselves whether being in a crowd to register makes sense when there is a possibility of contracting the deadly coronavirus which started in China and currently spreading in some parts of the world.
“You queue in that close proximity for long time… You breath and when anybody coughs, you panic but breath (WITHOUT a Nose Mask) the air,” adding, “You sweat and clean your face.”
Continuing and this time a direct hit at the BVR device where according to them “all previous persons have placed potentially infected fingers.”
“The EC officials who have been exposed to EVERYBODY without protection interact with you while you breath facing each other…You collect the New VOTERS ID Card from the EC staff who is not wearing gloves while handling the card,” they pushed mischievously.
Wicked Agenda
The other factors which should inform the scuttling of the planned registration exercise is what, according to the NDC, is that “you leave the CORONAVIRUS REGISTRATION Centre manned by the EC to your home, office, school, church, mosque, market etc to spread the infection … and then you start seeing symptoms of CORONAVIRUS after incubation period.”
Finally they claimed, “You go to the health facility where you are confirmed positive, healthcare workers run away instead of quarantining you…”
Clearly assuming that there could be a coronavirus case in Ghana, the party states, “For now, we don’t know if there are cases of CORONAVIRUS in Ghana, as there is not yet a confirmed case.”
All that is needed, according to the NDC, is the presence of an infected person in one or more registration centres and that could trigger disaster.
Register Link
They then link it to the current register, saying, “The current register is credible according to the EC, and that they only want to make it more credible (from 99.4% to 100%) which is an impossibility.”
They pointed at the now suspended lesser Hajj and football matches, among other measures, taken around the world as basis for not compiling a new voters’ register, a presentation which is so pedantic that the real motive for treading on this new trajectory is not far-fetched.
The NDC also claims that President Akufo-Addo has no plans to deal with the virus yet wants to endanger the lives of Ghanaians with a new voters’ register.
Public Reaction
Those who read the post could not help but wonder why the NDC would want the deadly coronavirus to hit Ghana simply because for them it is a means of scuttling the compilation of a new voters’ register.
The short-lived campaign prompted many to wonder just what the current voters’ register contains for which they are ready to do all they can to preserve it.
But for the rapid public opprobrium on social media which was sufficient disapproval for their project they would have continued on that tangent.
Queuing to register for the new voters’ register for them is not necessary considering, in their view, the fact that the coronavirus has afflicted the world.
December Election
It is interesting though that the NDC was mute over the voting in December which also entails the assemblage of a large number of persons.
NDC Gurus
Some NDC gurus are reported to have expressed disapproval at the coronavirus approach fearing that it could be counterproductive which is exactly what has happened.
A new voters’ register is a thorn in the flesh of the NDC.
The party has embarked on multiple modules to scuttle the project which the independent EC is ready to roll out.
Register Demo
Expensive demonstrations have been undertaken in Tamale where it was tagged in Dagbani, ‘tikusagye’, to wit we won’t agree, Kumasi, ‘Yennpene’, and Accra ‘Wokpene’ both meaning same, we won’t agree.
Some civil society organizations were also contracted subtly to embark on advocacy programmes in a bid to have public opinion turned against a new voters’ register.
By A.R. Gomda