President Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo has called on chiefs in the Volta Region to impress on their people to partake in the ongoing registration for National Identification Authority (NIA) card to provide a national database to help in the planning and organisation of the country.
He made the call on Monday, July 9, when he visited the region on a three-day tour to commission completed projects and inspect ongoing ones in the region.
Nana Akufo-Addo said people should disregard minority in parliament’s attempt to suggest that the purpose of NIA insisting on passports and birth certificates for the card is to disenfranchise some Ghanaians, particularly those from the Volta Region.
Section of Ghanaians especially National Democratic Congress (NDC) legislators are opposed to the restriction requirements to the two documents saying, it is likely to disenfranchise over 20 million Ghanaians.
A group, Strategic Thinkers Network-Africa has also sued the NIA over Voter ID exclusion in the ongoing Ghana card registration exercise. Its concern is that majority of citizens will be prevented from obtaining the card and be deprived of benefits that may come with acquiring the card.
According to Nana Akufo-Addo, the law requiring birth certificates and passports to be registered for the NIA card was passed in parliament “on a bi-partisan basis, there was no dissent” and therefore, no justification for allegations that it is targeted at some particular Ghanaians.
He assured that no Ghanaian will be excluded from the exercise because the law also provides that those without birth certificates and passports can produce a Ghanaian to vouch for them in order to get the NIA card.
By: Ewoenam Kpodo/voltaonlinegh.com
