The Bole Electoral Commission (EC) has trained members of the Ghana Blind Union, on how to use tactile jackets to vote in the forthcoming December election in the Bole Municipality.
The move by the EC was to ensure that people with visual impairment were not denied the opportunity to exercise their franchise in identifying and voting for candidates of their choice.
The program attracted about 25 visually Impaired participants and was held at the Disability Center in Bole Municipality.
Mr. Issac Gyedua, the Bole Municipal Director of the EC told Yagbon News that the visually impaired are very important to them and we have to accord them with that respect.
Mr Isaac Gyedua noted that as we are approaching December 7 for the presidential and parliamentry elections it has become necessary that the EC trains them how to vote with the tactile jackets on December 7.
“Our voting centers are going to be friendly and it will be set up at places where it will be friendly to all persons and so the person with Disabilities will not be left out and they will not get greater challenges when it comes to voting” he said.
The EC Boss added that person with Disability are our people and friends and they are not going to be intimidated at any of the polling centers and they have trained their presiding officers and other polling officials to give person with Disability with preferential treatment to vote and they can go back to their houses.
Mr. Salifu Adama, Savannah Regional president of the Blind Union, stated that the introduction and adoption of the tactile jackets had helped to alleviate difficulties blind people face during voting.
Mr. Salifu Adama pointed out that some individuals in position of trust, who were responsible for assisting persons with visually Impaired, has misused this trust by intentionally deceiving them into voting for candidates they support, rather than allowing them to make their own choices.
source: yagbonradioonline/Fataw Diwura
