Final whistle: You’re either in or out

The Electoral Commission (EC) has set February 19 as the day for starting a 21-day National Voters Register display exercise, which will end on March 10. All eligible voters should turn up to verify and confirm their particulars and polling stations. The EC is mandated to display the National Voters Registers for special Interest Groups (SIGs).

Section 25 of Electoral Commission Act mandates the Commission to execute the foregoing function for a period of at least 21 days in case of a National Voters Register and such a period appointed by the Commission to cover Registers of SIGs, subject to section 118(5) of the Local Government Act.

It is a fact that many voters ignore this exercise yet it is very crucial, given that there was reorganisation of polling stations. During the display period, a voter may raise an objection against the inclusion, in the voters roll, of any name of a person on grounds that the person is not qualified to vote or be registered as voter in a given parish. Other issues is where a ward that the name of a person qualified to vote or to be registered, has been omitted.
Electoral governance is a comprehensive and multi-tasked activity involving three levels of rule making, rule application, and rule adjudication. Rule making involves designing the basic rules of the electoral process; rule application deals with implementing the rules to organise elections; while rule adjudication entails resolving disputes arising from the process.

On the whole, electoral governance involves ‘the interaction of constitutional, legal, and institutional rules and organisational practices that determine the basic rules for election procedures and electoral competition; organise campaigns, voter registration, and resolve disputes and certify results’.
Political parties should pay keen attention to this exercise, the tribunals whose role is to identify non-residents and those who died and recommend names for deletion. It is better to secure your voters by ensuring they are on the voters roll. Otherwise, complaining later will be costly. Be part of this process and raise any concerns during the display of the voters rregister.
Counter objections to the recommendations for deletion from or inclusion onto the register will be made during this period.

The Commission is mandated to reorganise polling stations basing on numbers in any polling station. When a polling station has 900 or 1,200, the EC splits it. Politicians who intend to contest for different positions should not ignore this exercise as they are likely to spend money on people who are not on the register.
Many voters requested to transfer to another polling station so it is during this exercise that they should confirm whether the transfer was effected or not. The game is on now and you either join or watch from a distance. Do not waste the opportunity to play in the field as doing so will relegate you tothe pavilion where you will be a spectator.
Faridah Lule,
[email protected]