PRESS STATEMENT

PROTECTING THE RIGHTS TO HEALTH AND LIFE IN THE FACE

OF THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC (COVID -19): NEED FOR
SUSPENSION OF ONGOING REGISTRATION EXERCISE IN THE
EASTERN REGION AND PLANNED VOTERS' REGISTRATION
EXERCISE BY THE NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AUTHORITY
(NIA) AND THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION (EC)
This Statement is issued by the Commission on Human Rights and
Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) pursuant to its Constitutional functions in the
protection and promotion of fundamental rights and freedoms of all persons in
Ghana guaranteed under chapter 5 and 6 of the Constitution.

The Commission (CHRAJ/Commission) has noted with concern the 9 confirmed

cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) traceable to persons who had travelled outside
the country and returned to Ghana as residents or citizens and the general belief
of medical experts in this area that this increasing trend will continue for some
time before it plateaus. It is gratifying to note that, the affected persons, who are
reportedly isolated/quarantined, are stable and responding to treatment.

The outbreak of COVID-19 undoubtedly poses a public health threat which has
engulfed the whole world and has led to fatalities in certain regions of the world
notably Asia-Pacific, Europe, The Americas and now breaking out all over the
African continent. In the light of the obvious threat, countries are adopting
stringent strategies to contain and combat the spread of the disease among the
general population. In other words, it has become imperative for countries to take
measures to avoid community spread or transmission of the deadly disease.
It is against this backdrop that CHRAJ wishes to state its position on the ongoing
discussions/debates regarding adoption of effective measures aimed at avoiding
the transmission or spread of the disease in Ghana. To this end, the Commission
acknowledges the recent mitigating measures taken by the Government as
outlined by H.E. President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo as contained in his
directives encompassing closure of schools, universities, suspension of social
activities such as funerals, church activities and similar activities capable of
generating mass gatherings and the practice of social distancing among the
general public.

Old Parliament House, Accra I P. o. Box AC 489. Accra, Ghana I +233302662150 '668839/664267/664561
wl"lw.chraj.gov.gh
The Commission further notes that the President's directives are grounded in the
Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan for COVID-19 issued by the World
Health Organisation (WHO) under its Interim Guidance of 7th March, 2020. The
WHO's response strategy serves as a benchmark for adaptation and deployment
domestically by countries affected by the pandemic, and also aims, among others,
to slow or stop transmission, prevent outbreak and delay spread as well as
minimize the disease's impact on health systems, social services and economic
activity. Intrinsically, WHO's Response Strategy is a public health intervention
anchored in social distancing measures, which targets cancellation of mass
gatherings or avoiding crowding, including closure or suspension of schools and
other social services as means of controlling spread or transmission of COVID-
19.
The Commission is however worried that in spite of the President's directives and
the existing WHO precautionary measures aimed at containment and combating
COVID-19, the National Identification Authority (NIA) is relentlessly embarking
on a registration exercise in the Eastern Region. This has been exacerbated by
reports in the media that the registration officials are poorly equipped with hand
sanitisers, gloves and nose masks. It is trite knowledge that the NIA registration
exercise will engender gathering or massing up of potential registrants thereby
undermining acceptable protocols on social distancing relative to the national
response. In addition, the NIA's action is a clear violation of the right to health
and ultimately the right to life as stipulated under Articles 34(2), 13(1) and 33(5)
of the 1992 Constitution (Constitution) respectively, which are premised on
Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR),
Articles 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (ICESCR), Article 16 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples'
Rights (ACHPR).
Significantly, Article 12(1) of the Constitution provides that:
Thefundamental rights andfreedoms enshrined in this [Constitution} shall
be respected and upheld by Executive, Legislature and organs of
government and its agencies and, where applicable to them, by all natural
and legal persons in Ghana ...
Furthermore, it is noteworthy to indicate that Ghana has signed unto the UN
Agenda 2030/Sustainabie Development Goals (SDGs), which obligates all
organs of government to observe and implement the SDGs, in this context, SDG
3 in respect of the right to health and well-being.
Concerning the Electoral Commission (EC), the Commission's attention has been
drawn to a Press Statement dated 1701 march, 2020 issued by Sylvia Annoh (Mrs),
EC's posture and intransigence would undermine WHO protocols/benchmarks
on COVID-19 and capable of violating the above mentioned provisions of the
Constitution, international and regional human rights instruments and the SDGs
for which Ghana is a State Party and a signatory.

The Commission wishes to emphasise that government or State organs

particularly the NIA and EC, as duty bearers are obligated to respect the
fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed in chapter 5 of the Constitution and
specifically as directed under Article 12 already set out above in the performance
of their functions and to uphold the rights based approach in protecting the right
to health of all persons in Ghana consistent with General Comment N 0.18 of the
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) (E/C 12/2004/4,
para 11) which has clarified the right to health as:

... an inclusive right extending not only to timely and appropriate care but
also to the underlying determinant of health ... [encompassing]
participation of the population in all health-related decision-making at the
community, national and internationallevels.
In view of the above, the Commission is of the considered view that the President
or the Inter-Ministerial Committee calls the NIA to order by suspending forthwith
its ongoing registration exercise in the Eastern Region until the COVID-9
pandemic normalises.
In the same vein, the Commission calls on the President or the Inter-Ministerial
Committee on COVID-19 to advise the EC on the potential public health risk and
safety associated with the planned Voters' Registration due to the danger or threat
that any mass gathering arising from such an exercise can pose to the health and
life of the people.
The Commission further recommends that Government as a matter of urgency
provide protective gear and equipment to all hospitals and health facilities both
private and public and to all health professionals directly handling Covid-19
suspected cases to mitigate the looming contagion in the protection of the rights
to health and life of these professionals who are exposed to serious risks of
contracting the deadly virus in the line of duty on a daily basis.