The Electoral Commission of Zambia has commenced voter registration in Correctional facilities.
A check at Lusaka Central Correctional Facility in Lusaka revealed that a number of inmates have registered to vote in the 2021 General elections.
According to Lusaka Central Correctional facility Officer in Charge Senior Superintendent Kenani Masase,the facility has 1,224 Male inmates with 603 inmates requiring to obtain National Registration Cards (NRC’S) to allow them to register as voters.
He said the National Registration and Passport office have set base at the Correctional facility to issue NRC’S, as the ECZ is conducting voter registration.
Senior Superintendent Masase said the process is going on well since it commenced.
The assumption by a group of desperate individuals is that all the prisoners will vote for them and that they will be the only ones to access prisons during campaigns.However,they forget that us who are not in prisons are more than those that are in. When it is your time to lose,there is nothing you can do about it lest you die like Pharaoh ‘s Soldiers.
While I’ve no problems with prisoners voting, it’s the manner in which it’s being done, how they will vote and the many unanswered questions.
1. Say a registered voter-currently free happens to land in prison slightly before the polling day will that person be allowed to vote?
2. Police Station cells are not under ZCS jurisdiction, will people that have been remanded since voter registration started be allowed to register?
3. Will registered voters that happen to be in Police Cells on the polling be allowed to vote?
4. What will happen to prisoners registered to vote who will be transferred to different correctional facilities, will they’ve to be taken back to vote from the prison they registered?
I believe prisoner voting has been ill-timed.
Lastly I’d like to say this,…
Cont’d.
Lastly I’d like to say this, “it’s not fair or just to allow someone who acted against civility to participate in civility”.
How is ECZ doing it without prisoners producing their original NRCs?
Price you pay for having dull and incompetent commissioners!!!
The opposition should go to court immediately demanding that ECZ should implement mechanisms which enables it to conduct free and fair elections involving prisoners or people under lawful custody in Zambia. Should ECZ fail to provide mechanisms for administering free and fair elections involving voting by people under lawful custody, then people under lawful custody should not vote in the 2021 elections until the time ECZ provides a mechanisms for free and fair elections. Courts are there to ensure delivery of justice in the country. When the court ruled that prisoners should exercise the right to vote, the court didnot give ECZ the authority to undermine the important function of conducting free and fair elections.
…being a prisoner means forfeiting your right to participate in civil dispensation. That’s why they can’t get a drivers license for example…but somehow they can vote? PF desperation knows no bounds! Wake up my friends before it’s too late
Ba Chishimba Kambwili is regsitered in Roan Constituency. There is a possible conviction lying over his head if his appeal is thrown out. If that happens and he is sent to Prison in Mumbwa Prison, will he be allowed to go to Luanshya to Vote?
According to Tayali, there is impecable evidence that will send HH to prison and that he will not be on the ballot. But we know Bally is a registered voter in Kabulonga. If Bally is sent to Mukobeko like last time, will he be brought to Kabulonga Secondary school to come and cast his vote? Just asking?
Great stuff. We look forward to the elections. Me I already have thr results..continue crying ba upnd
1)How are they determining that the prisoners are Zambian by birth?
-Do they have birth certificates, Affidavits of birth, parents or guardians to vouch for them.
2)Most adult prisoners already have NRC’s outside prison. Will ECZ verify this or they will just issue new NRC’s to the inmates?
-There is a risk of people having multiple NRC’s.
RECIPE FOR RIGGING ELECTIONS.
All you bloggers above are missing the gimic here. Prisons or prisoners voting is not the issue. The issue is who is going to MONITOR THE COUNTING IN PRISONS? Who will accredit them?
So don’t you see how prisons votes & numbers will be used to increase votes for someone?
In Europe alone fifteen countries, including Spain, Sweden, Switzerland allow prisoners to vote, and there’s no hue and cry over anything over there.
Mama, mama “election rigging expert” who was spotted in Malawi brought to allegedly rig elections in favour of incumbent Peter Mutharika, is now claiming to already have the 2021 results and is urging ba upnd to continue crying
And the only people who have been their to campaign is the ruling party…?
Better for a prisoner to vote than a upnd diasporan. At least prisoners are patriotic and zambian unlike the toilet cleaners
What do you smoke, you have excellent qualities any racist would admire and applaud. Your prejudice against the upnd and your so called diasporans is unZambian, but guess what, it’s not your mother’s farm. If you were involved in any lab test, I would put it in the BIN.
There are prisoners who need NRCs before they can be issues with voter’s cards. Eh? How did we have them locked up in the absence of NRCs? You don’t send someone to jail unless they are over 18 and the only way of knowing that is by looking at an NRC.
This can only happen in a failed shithole country with useless instructions of governance and an incompetent political leadership!!!