The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) wants the Electoral Commission (EC) to without delay resolve what has been identified as challenges with the provisional voter register.
This the coalition says is to ensure no voter is disenfranchised in the 2020 general elections.
In its pre-election environment observation statement for the month of September, CODEO indicated that there exist stakeholder engagement and communication gaps leading to the register-related concerns thus, the need for more consultations to remedy the situation.
“CODEO entreats the EC to take all necessary steps to rectify the identified challenges with the provisional voter register so that all registered voters are able to exercise their right to vote. While the Coalition acknowledges the public explanations provided by the EC regarding the challenges identified with the provisional voter register, the Coalition believes there are still gaps in stakeholder engagement and communication.”
Additionally, CODEO wants the electoral management body to extend similar consultations to the other election processes to safeguard the integrity of the polls.
“The Coalition, therefore, entreats the EC to enhance stakeholder engagement, not just around the voter register but on the entire electoral process to help mobilize public support and promote transparency and inclusion towards achieving a free, fair and credible electoral process”, the statement added.
Meanwhile, the EC has also been asked to make available the updated register to the various political parties to enhance the trust of the electoral process.
“The Coalition also entreats the EC to make the updated provisional voter register available to political parties as early as possible to allow for the cross-checking of figures in the bid to promote trust and further ensure that all identified challenges have been rectified before the voter register is certified. The EC is also entreated to provide clear information on the results of the Adjudication Review Committee’s work.”
Several concerns about the missing names came up during the voter exhibition exercise and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) highlighted large numbers of missing names from areas believed to be aligned to the party.
But the EC restored the names of persons that were said to have been missing from the provisional voters’ register.
It also refuted claims it deliberately removed such names from the register.
The EC also said it has rectified duplicate voter identification numbers that were earlier detected during the registration process.
Click here for the full statement from CODEO.
