THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) will today start a fresh 30-day mandatory voter registration and voter education exercise countrywide, weeks after the initial programme was heavily criticised for not being transparent. By Staff Reporter
The previous phase of mobile voter registration, which ended on May 19 with 200 000 reported to have registered as first-time voters, was marred by chaos as several anomalies were cited.
Civic society groups called for a rerun of the exercise saying many people were not catered for due to stringent conditions that saw aspiring new voters being turned away.
Proof of residence was said to be problematic in that most young voters had no houses in their names.
ZEC has indicated that in the event that one fails to produce such proof, they could complete an affidavit form where they would declare their personal details and signed by a commissioner of oaths.
MDC legal affairs secretary senator David Coltart yesterday urged Bulawayo residents to participate in the crucial exercise saying it was not the time to be apathetic.
“The intensive national exercise of voter registration and inspection of the voters’ roll starts tomorrow (today),” he said.
“I urge everyone to use this opportunity at the very least to check if they are on the voters’ roll and also to get registered if they haven’t done so before.
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“Now is not the time to be apathetic. If we are apathetic then those opposed to democratic reform and the positive transformation of our nation could win this election by default.”
According to ZEC, during the last exercise, Bulawayo recorded 5 068 first time vote, Matabeleland South had 9 403, Matabeleland North had 13 536 and Midlands registered 23 404.
