Policy think tank, Strategic Thinkers Network-Africa, STRANEK-Africa have petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice on the alleged violation of privacy rights by Electoral Commission of Ghana.
STRANEK-Africa earlier called on the Data Protection Commission to bring the Electoral Commission to order.
STRANEK is accusing the EC of not properly handling data concerning the Voters register.
In their petition STRANEK wants CHRAJ to enforce actions into alleged breach of privacy laws by the Electoral Commission.
This they say has become necessary following the Electoral Commission’s decision to publish full details of persons captured in the electoral roll on their website.
The EC has come under some criticisms after a widely shared Google Drive link containing a list of Ghanaians eligible to exercise their franchise in the December poll.
Though the EC insist they did not wrong by publishing the details, STRANEK is of the believe that the EC did not protect the privacy of Ghanaians and this is in violation of Article 18 of the 1992 Constitution.
Portions of the petition read: “Article 18 of the 1992 Constitution talks about the privacy of the individual which is a fundamental right and how no person shall be subjected to interference with the privacy of his home, property, correspondence or communication except in accordance with the law and as may be necessary, in a free and democratic society for public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the protection of health or morals, for the prevention of disorder or crime or for the prevention of disorder or crime or for the protection of the rights or freedoms of others. The Electoral Commission ought to be held vicariously liable for any action so far as the data of registered voters for December 7, 2020 elections are concerned. It is important to establish that your outfit is clothed with powers to disentangle the mystery behind the reckless dumping of data when Electoral Commission could have ensured that parties register as data processers with your outfit and abide by the law in their use of the revelations. Dumping data of registered voters in an environment of poor amenability demands that your outfit enforces the provisions of Act 843 against the Electoral Commission where it deems fit”
Below is the STRANEK petition
