Elmina (C/R), March 30, GNA- Marial Bucknor, a 58-year-old trader from Bronyibima near Elmina, who attempted to register twice during the just-ended voters registration exercise, was on Tuesday sentenced to a year's imprisonment in hard labour by a district court at Elmina. Marial, alias Ekua Atta Kakra, pleaded guilty. Passing sentence, the presiding judge, Mr Kwame Ohene Essel expressed concern at Bucknor's conduct.

Prosecuting, Police Chief Inspector Keyward Adjei told the court that on March 20, Marial went to the Old Post Office registration centre at Elmina to register with the name Marial Bucknor, 57, of house number 7/13 Lime Street, Elmina, and was accordingly issued with a registration receipt. He said six days later, she again went to another registration centre, at the R. P. Baffour Memorial JSS, also at Elmina to register under the name Ekua Atta Kakra, 58, of house number 56/21 Tatarmu, Elmina. Chief Inspector Adjei said it was when a registration assistant was in the process of applying some indelible ink on her thumb, he discovered traces of the ink on it and confronted her.

Initially, Marial denied having already registered, when she was challenged and claimed that the traces of the ink on her thumb was applied when she attended a musical concert at the national theatre in Accra. She later admitted upon persistent questioning, that she had already registered, but had attempted to register again because she had lost the receipt given her.