The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Identification Authority (NIA), Professor Kenneth Ataffuah
has explained that, the authority never disobeyed the President’s directive amidst the coronavirus fears.
According to him, the activities of the NIA were well within the confines of the President’s directive.
Speaking in an interview on Happy98.9FM’s ‘Epa Hoa Daben’ Professor Attafuah said, ” it’s not a simple matter of Ken Attafuah getting up and making a decision. I am not haughty or prideful, I just obey the law. We have never defied his excellency contrary to public opinion. The President said that all public gatherings and conferences are banned. He later added that businesses and other work places can continue to work subject to observances of the social distancing protocols.”
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“You have to understand that, the President never banned organizations from working in the country. He never said citizens shouldn’t meet. He spoke about social gatherings. Looking into it, social gatherings referred to activities which brought people into close contact and could lead to the easy spread of COVID-19. He spoke about close contact or relationship,” he stated.
He furthered that, the entire NIA being discerning beings with regard to what the president said, realised that the NIA could continue working but had to make sure that social distancing protocols were obeyed. “The NIA realised it could adhere to the social distancing directive of between 1 and 2 metres and could manage queues to prevent crowds as their personnel had already been trained in that,” he said.
He revealed that the NIA started adhering to the President’s directive and implemented the appointment booking system to prevent crowding and these processes worked.
“We were taking some of these precautionary measures before his Excellency gave his addres,” he noted.
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The Ghana Medical Association and some Civil Society Organizations demanded the suspension of the Ghana card registration in the Eastern region amidst fears of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
Their demands went unheard by the NIA until two citizens filed an injuction against the authority after they alleged the NIA had breached the President’s orders.
By: Joel Sanco