Visually impaired will be able to cast ballot: Ghana EC

Ghana's Electoral Commission (EC) has assured all visually impaired or blind persons who qualify to vote in this year's general election that they will be able to cast their ballot at all polling stations, local media reported here Tuesday.

Head of Gender and Disability at the EC, Abigail Nutakor said that the Commission had procured enough tactile ballot jacket for all polling stations to enable those with visual impairment to cast their vote.

She described the tactile ballot jacket as a cardboard folder with raised dots arranged numerically to represent the positions of each of the candidates on the ballot paper.

Besides each numerical arrangement is a corresponding window, which is big enough to accommodate the thumb for voting.

The tactile ballot jacket has been designed to easily identify the top with a notch to avoid a mix up in the event it is turned upside down.

Users are also guided with a perforated edge of the ballot paper to identify the top as well.

Blind or partially sighted voters independently slot the ballot paper into the tactile folder and, with the help of the numerically arranged raised dots, select their preferred candidate and consequently cast their vote by thumb printing in the window provided.

Ms. Nutakor said each polling station would have two tactile ballot jackets in the December 7 elections, explaining that one will be for the presidential and the other for the parliamentary election.

She said that although the EC provided tactile ballot jacket in the last general election, some persons with visual impairment claimed they were disenfranchised due to the absence of tactile ballot jackets at some polling stations.

Additionally, Nutakor said physically challenged persons who turn up to cast their votes would not be obliged to join queues at the various polling stations. Endit