THE challenges of acquiring National Registration Cards (NRCs) particularly for people in rural areas who cover long distances to obtain the cards, will lessen following Government’s intended mobile NRCs registration exercise.
Home Affairs Minister Davies Mwila announced last week in a ministerial statement in Parliament that Government has set aside K25 million for mobile NRCs registration exercise.
Mr Mwila said, the countrywide exercise to be conducted in Polling Stations, would kick off in the second week of April, this year in which more than 1 million people would be registered.
Commenting on the matter, Chief Chikanta of the Tonga speaking people in Kalomo, hailed Government for allocating funds for the exercise to benefit people in remote areas.
Chief Chikanta said in an interview that many people, citing those in rural chiefdoms, encounter challenges such as covering long distances to acquire NRCs from the designated centres.
“This is a good initiative by Government, because this exercise will give people an opportunity to either acquire new NRCs or replace the lost ones,” he said.
He said, Kalomo central business district, located about 100 kilometres from his chiefdom, was the only town where people from his area could acquire NRCs.
He said lack of NRCs had deprived many people from participating in national events such as the recent presidential elections.
Chief Chikanta cited the 2016 tripartite election which would be an important national event in which people needed to possess NRCs to obtain voters’ cards.
He said, for people to participate in other sectors of the economy such as sale of maize to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), being in possession of NRCs was one of the prerequisites.
Carry that exercise first in all our strong holds.
This should be simplified to a door-to-door full time exercise. Every qualified person will be registered not to mention the creation of employment involved therein.
Bob. Which one is your strong hold? Is the nrc registration for PF or a national one?