Kanchibiya District Voter Education Committee Coordinator (DVEC) Chrispin Chishimba has expressed worry over the continued rains in Kanchibiya district posing significant challenges for the ongoing voter registration exercise.
Speaking in an interview with the media, Mr Chishimba said the continuous rains being experienced in the district in the past days has affected the transportation of the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) materials.
He said the terrain in the district has worsened after the onset of the rains, with the road network in most parts of the district becoming impassable.
Mr Chishimba disclosed that vehicles have continued breaking down and getting stuck in mud adding that the Voter Education Facilitators (VEFs) have also been affected in their exercise.
“The rains have proved challenging for the VEFs. They are constantly having to reschedule their work times to suit the observable rainfall patterns,” he said.
Mr Chishimba explained that despite the challenges, the team remained committed to ensuring the voter registration exercise reached all eligible citizens in the district.
Meanwhile, Voter Education Facilitator Brian Kombe stated that the rains had forced him to reschedule meetings at random.
He said it had been difficult to stick to planned activities when heavy rains disrupted schedules.
“It has been difficult to stick to planned activities which were made the previous day when it’s raining. I often have to wait for the rains to stop,” Mr Kombe said.
He said people also come to register only after the rains stop affecting the planned schedule.
Another Voter Education Facilitator Eugene Mulenga disclosed that youths had not been easy to mobilise for voter education.
He said activities such as mining, farming and caterpillar harvesting had posed significant challenges when trying to mobilise young people.
Mr Mulenga said women and the elderly were the easiest to mobilise for voter registration.
He urged youths engaged in economic activities to find time to register as voters, emphasising that the exercise was crucial for their democratic participation.
