Civil society bodies demand extension of voter registration period – AIM Mozambique Elections

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Civil society bodies demand extension of voter registration period – AIM Mozambique Elections

7:09 CAT | 18 May 2023

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: O País]

The “Mais Integridade” (“More Integrity”) consortium of seven prominent Mozambican civil society organisations believes that the irregularities and equipment breakdowns reported during the current voter registration exercise justify extending the deadline for registration.

The registration, ahead of the municipal elections scheduled for 11 October, began on 20 April, and is due to end on 3 June. But across the country reports have come in of breakdowns of the computers (known as “Mobile Ids”) and printers used by the voter registration brigades.

This is one of the factors causing long queues to build up at the registration posts. Often citizens are told to “come back tomorrow” to pick up their voter cards, without which they will be unable to vote in October.

Speaking at a Maputo press conference on Tuesday, the chairperson of “Mais Integridade”, Edson Cortez, who is also director of the anti-corruption NGO, the Centre for Public Integrity (CIP), expressed his disquiet at the constant breakdowns of the computers and printers. In several municipalities, according to the Consortium, this situation, together with the slowness in attending to citizens, is causing potential voters to give up, rather than stay in queues for hours, or days.

The breakdowns may thus contribute to disenfranchising large numbers of Mozambicans.

The Consortium is also worried by cases of voter cards issued with various defects, such as stains and photographs that are out of focus, without the slightest quality. On voting day this might lead to the disqualification of voters.

Edson Cortez said the consortium does not understand how problems are occurring in handling the machines, when beforehand there was a pilot registration, a period which should have served to detect and correct such anomalies.

“We are also concerned at the repeated and illicit use of ‘lists of priorities’, which ensure that particular people do not go into the registration queues, while others wait for many hours”, said Cortez.

It is standard practice in the Mozambican public administration to grant priority to elderly people, the disabled and pregnant women. But at the voter registration posts, there are reports of “priority lists” covering members of the ruling Frelimo Party, teachers, and other workers employed by the state.

The Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE) has tried to outlaw this practice, but it seems that a considerable number of registration brigades are paying no attention to the STAE instructions.

Cortez also noted that a significant number of registration posts are not accessible to disabled people, and some registration brigades are illicitly preventing access to the posts by “Mais Integridade” observers.

“Mais Integridade” recommends that the electoral administration strengthen measures to put an end to the various irregularities which, in its view, are threatening the transparency and integrity of the registration.

According to the consortium, “it cannot be in the interests of the electoral bodies to have another problematic electoral cycle, which in no way contributes to the strengthening of democracy and the pacification of the country”.

The consortium calls on the electoral management bodies to block any possibility of clandestine registration. The incidents reported so far (for instance, from Gurue in Zambezia province, from Chiure, in Cabo Delgado, or from Ribaue, in Nampula) involve the printing of voter cafrds at dead of night, sometimes in private houses, and far from the prying eyes of observers or journalists.

Also on Tuesday, the election office of the main opposition party, Renamo, met with the election management bodies to express its concern at the large number of anomalies and abuses reported. Renamo regarded the irregularities as “machinations” to prevent many potential voters from voting in October.

Source: AIM