Voting day remains Saturday, December 7 - NCCE

The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has said the voting day for the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections remain Saturday, December 7, 2024, starting from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Commission has therefore urged the general public to ignore a video circulating on social media claiming that the voting days for the 2024 elections have been scheduled separately for presidential candidates.

The said video was made by a presenter with a Kumasi-Based Radio and Television station, Oheneba Nana Asiedu.

A statement signed and issued by the Chairperson of the NCCE, Kathleen Addy, urged the public to ignore the said video and its content, which it described as false and misleading.

“There is only one voting day for the election, which is Saturday, December 7, 2024. Voting starts from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for both presidential and parliamentary candidates,” it said.

It emphasised that all qualified presidential candidates would be on one ballot, and the electorate would vote for their preferred candidate, and the same applied to parliamentary candidates.

Swift action

The NCCE commended the Ghana Police Service for its swift action in handling the matter and said the law must take its full course to deter others from spreading false information.

The Commission said it would continue to intensify civic and voter education nationwide to empower citizens with knowledge ahead of the December 7 polls.

It condemned the deliberate spreading of false information, stressing that disinformation was a threat to democracy. "We must collectively reject it," Ms. Addy said.

The Commission entreated all to verify information before sharing.

The police on Saturday, November 23, 2024, arrested the said presenter, Nana Asiedu, for allegedly publishing false news, an offence under Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).

The police said the video, recorded in the studios of Wontumi FM in Kumasi, depicted the presenter encouraging voters to cast their ballots for presidential candidates on separate days—a statement described by authorities as "false and likely to disturb public peace."

Nana Asiedu has since been granted bail by the police.

Source: graphic