The resumption of Voter Registration exercise has suffered a setback in Milenge District since the mobile exercise ended in December, 2010.
Milenge Council Secretary Fidelis Chanda told ZANIS in an interview today that since December 1, 2010, the voter registration centre in the area has recorded almost none.
Mr Chanda attributed the poor turn out to lack of sensitization on the exercise and long distances to the registration centre.
He said most people, especially those who live in far places, are not even aware that the exercise has continued at the civic centre.
He said there is great need to sensitize people that the voter registration exercise has continued at the council office.
Mr Chanda further attributed the poor turn out for the voter registration to long distances to the centre.
He said it is difficult for people to move long distances to Milenge District Council to register as voters.
Mr. Chanda said being the cultivation season many people would rather go to their crop fields than walk a long distance to the civic centre to register as voters.
He cited Milambo and Fibalala areas as two of the places situated far from the district council and it would require someone the whole day to ride to the civic centre where the voter registration exercise is taking place.
Mr. Chanda suggested that government should introduce a deliberate measures to allow for mobile registration in order to reach the potential voters.
He said most people who live near the council offices had already registered during the mobile registration exercise.
He said government had done well to introduce the mobile registration exercise that yielded good results, but noted that as far as the voters’ registration exercise remained stationed at the council offices he does not expect the turn out to improve.
Meanwhile, Mansa Municipal Council Public Relations Officer Chris Mumba has appealed to the government to put up sensitization programmes on the Voter Registration Exercise.
Mr Mumba said despite the district recording a favorable number of voters from December 1, 2010 to date, there is still need for effective sensitization on the exercise especially in rural areas.
He further explained that some people who come to replace their voters’ card in most cases find it inconveniencing to go to the police station to get a police report.
He said people were used to getting police report from the registration centre and since police officers stopped issuing police report from the centre, many people just walk away when they are advised to go and collect a police report at the police offices.
[ ZANIS ]
Fidelis Chanda must be dull! long distance is not the factor, the problem is that there is no car which can go to fibalala, in short there is no road for cars in fibalala. Iwe fidelis how do you expect my mother and grand above 60 to cycle from milambo to milenge about 150km+, are you mad. If the car cannot make a day journey from milambo to milenge, how do you expect a person to go with a bike just for registration? So you mmd and ECZ cannot open other centres for registration in milambo and fibalala? you want Mbulakulima to go and rig there? those people who did not register now by ECZ will be claimed by mmd as popular in rural votes. this is the government of developmenting where is kunda to affirm development in milenge. shame on you!!!!!!!!!!:-?:-?