Yiaga Africa To NASS: Give Prisoners, Security Personnel, Journalists Voting Rights

Civil Society Organisation (CSO), Yiaga Africa, has called on the national assembly to amend the electoral legal frameworks to introduce voting rights for prisoners and special voting for eligible citizens performing essential election duties.

Yiaga Africa suggested that security personnel, electoral staff, observers, and journalists should be allowed to vote ahead, as in some countries, including the United States.

The recommendation was contained in the Preliminary Report of the 2024 Ghana General Election, signed by Dr Aisha Abdullahi, Chair of Yiaga Africa’s Election Study Observation Mission (ESOM), and Samson Itodo, Executive Director of Yiaga Africa.

Yiaga Africa also urged the establishment of a permanent mechanism for routine post-election reviews to identify and implement actionable reforms.

The report recommended, among other reforms, reviewing ballot paper formats to include candidates’ photographs and names for better electoral clarity.

“Enhancing transparency by disclosing election-related information proactively and involving political parties, civil society, and the media in electoral procurement processes.

“Leveraging technology and ethical use of artificial intelligence to ensure the integrity of voter registration, authentication, and results collation.

“Encouraging political stakeholders to uphold national values, including patriotism, integrity, and public interest, to strengthen democratic processes.”

Yiaga Africa commended Ghana’s electoral practices, noting that verifying results at the national collation centre with party agents promotes transparency and stakeholder participation.

The report highlighted key practices, such as allowing voters without verification IDs to vote if their names appear on the voter register, which reduces disenfranchisement.

The organisation further observed that voice prompts like “Rejected” or “Verified” on Biometric Verification Devices (BVDs) enhance the monitoring process for voters and party agents.

Yiaga Africa emphasised the benefits of special voting, proxy voting, and prisoners’ voting, which protect voting rights and boost citizen participation.

“Including candidates’ names, photographs, and symbols on ballots ensures clarity for voters, while providing tissue boxes in voting cubicles reduces smudging on ballot papers.

Other notable practices include the absence of movement restrictions on election day, which allows citizens to vote without hindrances while enabling economic activities to continue.

“The organisation also praised political parties’ systematic, data-driven parallel result tallying, promoting oversight and fostering acceptance of electoral outcomes.