The Judicial service has been bolstered by 731 commissioners for oaths who will be deployed for the National Identification Card (Ghana Card) registration exercise.
The commissioners of oath were sworn in by the Chief Justice, Justice Sophia Akuffo last Friday.
The commissioners of oath were trained at the Judicial Service Training Institute in Accra in partnership with the National Identification Authority (NIA).
They will oversee the process of swearing oaths and making of affirmations by relatives of persons who do not have birth certificates or passports, the two mandatory documents needed for the registration of the Ghana card.
Per the National Identification Register (Amendment) Law, 2017, Ghanaians who do not have a birth certificate or a passport, can have a relative or two persons who have already registered to vouch for them.
At the swearing-in ceremony held at the forecourt of the Supreme Court in Accra, the commissioners who took the oath of secrecy and the official oath were presented with certificates.
So far, 1,031 persons have been trained and sworn into office as commissioners for oaths for the nationwide registration exercise. 500 others are expected to be sworn into office in December in Kumasi.
Addressing the commissioners, the Chief Justice cautioned them not to engage in acts that would flout their oaths or the laws of the country, indicating that such acts were punishable under the law.
“You should not under any circumstances swear in anyone that you have not seen in person or whose claims you cannot verify. The Republic, in whose name you will be working, requires accurate and reliable information and your task is to make sure that this exercise provides that.
She added that the integrity of the registration process will largely depend on the commissioners whom she admonished to be firm but fair, accommodating but faithful to the law.
Also present at the ceremony was the acting Executive Secretary of the NIA, Professor Kenneth Agyemang Attafuah, who said the role of the commissioners for oaths could not be underestimated due to the fact that majority of Ghanaians expected to register, did not have the mandatory documents.
Source: citinewsroom.com