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Voters register before casting their ballots in Accra, capital of Ghana, on Dec. 1, 2020. Ghana opened a special voting on Tuesday to enable personnel who would not be able to cast their ballots on the election day, which is slated to fall on Dec. 7, to vote beforehand. /Xinhua
The Electoral Commission (EC) in Ghana said on Saturday that it will block eligible voters who go to polling centers to exercise their franchise without wearing facemasks in next Monday's general election.
Director of Electoral Services for the EC Serebour Quaicoe explained the decision had been taken by the electoral management body to control the spread of COVID-19 since many people will gather in the over 38,000 polling stations across the country.
He explained the commission had put in place measures to ensure all COVID-19 safety protocols are strictly abided by to prevent the spread of the virus.
"It is compulsory for all eligible voters who go to the polling centers Monday to have their facemask on, those without them will be asked to go and put it on before they are allowed to vote,” Quaicoe told local media.
The EC official urged all stakeholders to play their various roles well to ensure incident-free polls.
Senior lecturer with the School of Law at University of Ghana, Abdul Basit Aziz Bamba, observed the country has legislation in place making the wearing of a face-mask in public places compulsory.
"There is a law on the wearing of face-masks in the country hence makes it unlawful to go out to the public space without it. COVID-19 is a major health issue and we must all adhere to the safety protocols," he said.
Ghana will hold the general election with COVID-19 being a major public health issue here. The country's total cases as of Saturday stood at 52,096 with 50,924 recoveries.
Source(s): Xinhua News Agency
