By: Kai Gee
IPNews-Grand Gedeh County: Women of Gboe-Gewon town, Grand Gedeh county have threatened to boycott the pending Special Senatorial Election and Constitutional Referendum scheduled for December 8, because of previously unfulfilled elections promises and the lack of civic and voter education.
Queyon Sayee, a resident of Gboe-Gewon, said that for years the politicians they elected in office failed to fix the roads in the Ploe administrative district. She said that the bad infrastructure affects the elderly residents disproportionately, and they are now expected to walk nearly five hours to the polling centers to cast a ballot for the politicians who will again ignore them.
Sayee, like many others around the country, noted that due to the limited civil education and voter awareness on the Special Senatorial Election and the Constitutional Referendum, people risk making uninformed decision. This, she said, endangered the entire December 8 elections process and the meaning of elections in itself.
“The election will not be fair because women are not informed about the referendum and the roads are deplorable too” Sayee stated, pointing out that uneducated voters make uneducated and possibly poor decisions at the voting booth.
Co-chairperson of Gboe Gewon rural women group, Darling-girl Doe, aged 29, described the upcoming election as a process of excluding the locals because the ongoing civic voter education is not decentralized. Ms. Doe, who is a local farmer, said that she is deeply disappointed about the continued abandonment of Gboe Gewon town when it comes to national decision making.
First time voter, Patience Karr, who is a high school student, said that women in her district need to be better educated on the election, and more voter awareness programs have to be conducted in order to fully understand the propositions in the referendum and what they mean for the future.
On November 25, the National Elections Commission (NEC) announced that, as a result of the Supreme Court’s Opinion on the referendum, it will now introduce 8 (eight) propositions in the referendum, on eight separate ballots, to be voted on. Before the Supreme Court ruling, the NEC grouped the propositions on just 3 (three) ballots.
The short time to the elections, coupled with the fact that voters will have to joggle 8 referendum ballots and the lack of comprehensive voter education may further complicate the matters for the voters.
Dorothy Joloka, an advocate for women’s rights, added that the rights of women must be respected throughout the election process. She added that, creating a space for more awareness and outreach programs will demonstrate transparency and fairness in the upcoming elections.
Our reporter contacted the Grand Gedeh NEC office for comment, but officials refused to speak to the matter.
Gboe Gewon is a town approximately 65 kilometers away from commercial and political capital Zwedru and it is one of the remote areas in Grand Gedeh county.
