High Ibo registration but empty Gaza posts; other election news – CIP Mozambique Elections

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High Ibo registration but empty Gaza posts; other election news – CIP Mozambique Elections

8:41 CAT | 31 May 2023

Empty registration posts in Massingir, Gaza . [Image: CIP]

Ibo has already registered 186% of its voters

The island of Ibo has registered 6,000 voters more than the 7,200 than was predicted by the National Statistics Institute. Ibo is sheltering war-displaced people from the neighbouring districts of Quissanga, Macomia, and Mocímboa da Praia, which could explain the high registration.

But other districts accommodating people displaced by the war, such as Chiure, Balama, Mueda, Pemba and Montepuez, are presenting numbers close to the target.

Mocímboa da Praia is still a long way from its target, but the registration in Mocímboa only covers the municipal area, because of the insecurity in the district. Many displaced people have not returned, and our correspondents report that only a few voters are attending the registration posts in Mocímboa da Praia.

In terms of the numbers registered in Cabo Delgado, Chiure district is in first place with 151,500 voters registered, followed by Montepuez district, with 139,800 voters registered by 25 May. Pemba, Balama, Mueda, Mocímboa da Praia, have registered 101,300, 91,000, 77,400 and 20,800 respectively,. Ibo, although its has achieved more than its target, is the district with the lowest number of voters registered,13.500.

Gaza: registration posts almost deserted

Over four days our correspondents visited 25 registration posts, at various times, in six districts of Gaza province and they describe an absence of voters in most of the posts. Others have just a few voters. There are registration posts which haven’t managed to register more than five voters in days.

One of our correspondents says that in all ten brigades that were visited – Unit10 Communal Centre, Eduardo Mondlane EPC, 24 July EPC, Brigade installed in Xitinine neighbourhood, Fenicelene EPC, Patrice Lumumba Second Neighbourhood Secondary School, 7 October EPC and Third Neighbourhood EPC – the scenario is one of posts that are virtually empty. In each of the brigades, “We waited for about 30 minutes in the hope that some voter would appear to register, but none showed up”. The brigade members say that in recent days “the situation is getting worse. The voters have not appeared. We don’t know what’s going on”.

According to some supervisors, in past registrations, at this time, towards the end of the registration period, the voters appeared en masse, and long queues were formed.

In Massingir the registration posts visited – namely, the Graça Machel Secondary School, mobile brigades nos. 305 and 306, 6th neighbourhood EPC, and the technical school – showed very low levels of voter turnout. They were registering between 5 and 9 voters a day. Each registration book contains 800 voters and only now has the Technical School registration post closed its second voter registration book. Brigades at other schools have not even managed to close the first book. This is in contrast with what is happening in many parts of the country, where the brigades have already closed more than five books.

This Monday (29 May), our correspondents in Massingir visited the Tihovene B and A EPC registration posts. In Tihovene B, between 07.00 and 09.28, only one voter registered, In Tihovene A, by 11:45 not a single voter had yet registered.

In the town of Macia, the situation is better. The registration posts at the Macia Seconday School, the Macia Third Neighbourhood School, and the Macia primary school, have already closed the fourth book, but they complain that few voters have shown up in recent days.

In Mandlakazi, attendance at the posts is much better in the centre of the town, where they are still managing to register more than 50 voters a day. For example, in the post at the Eduardo Mondlane 1st and 2nd degree EP, on Friday (26 May) there was a good turnout, with about 20 voters in the queue. By 12.00, 16 voters had been registered. On the previous days, Wednesday and Thursday, 152 and 86 voters were registered, respectively. There was also good attendance at the post in the Maguiguane EPC.

But in the Rural Family School of Mandlakazi, the scenario is completely different. During the time our correspondents were present at the post, not a single voter registered. One of the brigade members, when asked about voter attendance, merely shook his head, indicating that he did not want to answer.

At the post set up in the CAIP, voter attendance was also feeble. By midday, only seven voters had registered.

In Xai-Xai city, the scenario was the same. The brigade stationed at the Amilcar Cabral EPC, in the Coca-Missava neighbourhood 6, had only registered three voters when our correspondents visited. The supervisor and the data input operator complained of the poor attendance by voters. On the previous day, Thursday (25 May), the post only registered 13 voters in the entire day. They say they have filled three registration books and in recent days, the machine has never broken down.

In the Unit “11” EPC, in the eleventh neighbourhood of Xai-Xai city, not a single voter was there when we visited the registration post. The brigade had also not closed the fourth registration book.

This Tuesday (30 May), four days from the end of the registration, our correspondents visited dozens of registration posts. The scenario remains the same as described in the previous issue of the Bulletin: many posts without voters.

For example, the brigade at the 25 June Primary School, in Chibuto, is only managing to register about 10 voters a day, and they only appear in the afternoon.

In Bilene, at the Mahungo EP registration post. the supervisor said there are no voters to register. When our correspondents were at this post, not a single voter arrived to register.

The post at the Josina Machel – Tsatsene Secondary School on Bilene Beach had registered five voters by mid-afternoon. The brigade will move on to the zone of Chilengue.

In Mandlakazi, the post at the Macave EPC had registered two voters by 09.30

At the EPC in the 3rd neighbourhood of Chókwè City, there was a noteworthy attendance of at least ten voters in the queue, but at the Muchakwuarine EPC there was not even one voter in the queue.

In Massingir town, at the Technical School brigade, there was more movement than on the previous day. In the morning 13 voters registered.

Mobile is kept in the house of a retired teacher in Chókwè

The equipment (known as a mobile ID), used at the registration post of the EPC in the 2nd Neighbourhood of Chókwè City is not kept at the STAE district headquarters, but in the home of a retired teacher known as “Grandpa Tchemane”.

Maganja town has already registered 123.9% of its voters

According to the district electoral authorities, by Friday (26 May), the town of Maganja da Costa, Zambézia, had already registered 16,300 voters, which is over 3,000 more than its target. It was expected that 13,100 voters would register just in the town.

But for the entire Maganja da Costa district, 72,500 voters have been registered. This is 81.9% of the total envisaged of 88,800 voters.

Guro STAE district director threatens and hinders observation

The Manica Civil Society Platform (PLASOC) said observers in the Guro town Secondary School was stopped by the STAE district director, Dinis Braunde, from noting down information. “The director told the observers that if they need any information, they should approach STAE, but we all know that STAE does not have any voter registration table, and the information that the observers collect is about what is happening in the posts which is then, if possible, communicated to those in authority so that they can take a position”, declared PLASOC, which is observing the voter registration with more than 200 observers in all districts that contain municipalities in Manica province.

Boundary change or just recognition means 30 households unable to register

Residents of the so-called “Magude neighbourhood” which, they say, in the past belonged to the Luís Cabral neighbourhood, in Maputo City, were surprised that they now belong to Trevo neighbourhood, in Matola municipality.

The block chief says that that block always belonged to Trevo neighbourhood, but that citizens were free to deal with their affairs in Maputo municipality, since Matola is a long way away. They were also free to register in Maputo city, but this year it is not permitted.

The residents are threatening not to vote because of the costs of travelling from their homes to the Matola registration posts. They say that travelling to register costs 36 MT.

The Magude neighbourhood is located between Luís Cabral neighbourhood (Maquinag) and the Maputo toll gate. The boundary between the two municipalities is the Maquinag bridge, but there is no signpost that indicates this separation.

Two more mobiles for the Pista Velha post

The registration post at the Pista Velha EPC, in Alto Molócuè town, now has two more registration computers (known as “Mobiles”), to speed up the registration. But, even with this boost, slowness prevails at the post, as well as payment of the monitors with food and money to facilitate registration.

Also in Alto Molócuè, the leader of Mumahi neighbourhood is accused of collecting citizens’ documents and of demanding 30 MT from them, supposedly to facilitate their registration.

Source: Centro de Integridade Públcia - CIP