Top 10 Problems Facing ECZ Voter Registration Drive

It is ten days since the ECZ’s voter registration exercise kicked off on November 9th. Scheduled to run until December 12th, the current drive will see the existing register replaced with a completely new version.  

The plans have been subject to criticism and even legal challenges, with opposition and civil society expressing concern that the process could result in the disenfranchisement of millions and instead arguing for the existing register to be updated given the limited time and resources available for the exercise. 

While the ECZ says it aims to capture nine million voters during the 30 day period, Vice President Inonge Wina confirmed yesterday that just 1.1 million voters have been registered so far. 

Now the process is fully underway Open Zambia looks at the top 10 problems facing the exercise to date. 

1.     Registration centres running out of basic supplies. There have been reports of centres running low on essential supplies such as ink. At one centre in Misisi compound, Chawama constituency, the centre had run out of ink by 1000 hours on the first day of registration.  

2.     The slow pace of registration. Reports from across the country that it is taking up to 35 minutes to register one individual in some cases. This does not include waiting time. According to the ECZ officials the process is expected to become quicker with time. 

3.     Staffing shortages. In many centres there is only one person completing the process for those who pre-registered online and one for those who did not. The result has been long waiting times. 

4.     People turned away. People have been turned away after waiting and told to return the next day.   

5.     The onset of rainy season means that in some rural areas people face logistical challenges in reaching registration centres, with women particularly badly affected.

6.     Technological faults and broken equipment have slowed the process. ECZ officials at Highlands school in Kabanana were still struggling to fix the broken machines at lunchtime on the first day of registration. 

7.     Widespread load-shedding is causing problems at centres without gensets available.  

8.     The lack of awareness of the deployment schedule among citizens has prompted additional campaigns, but there is concern this will prove too little too late. 

9.     Prior failings in the National Registration Card issuance exercise are having a knock-on impact because citizens require a NRC to secure a new Voters Card. Those without a NRC must now travel to district centres in order to register as voters. 

10.  Underfunding of the ECZ is compounding the problems, suggesting insufficient resources have been allocated to the exercise. The ECZ pointed to its financial difficulties earlier in the year when it increased election fees and announced that it would not be sponsoring observers to monitor the printing of ballot papers for the 2021 elections as it has done previously. This has prompted civil society to question why the ECZ has been so intent on overhauling the existing register rather than updating the existing version.