Electoral Commission will not issue voters cards
Nov 01, 2010
THE Electoral Commission will not issue voters cards for people who registered to vote during next year’s general elections.
By John Odyek
THE Electoral Commission will not issue voters cards for people who registered to vote during next year’s general elections.
“Voters cards are not going to be issued this time round. As long as your bio-data is on the national voters’ register, you will be identified and allowed to vote,†Charles Ochola, the Electoral Commission (EC) spokesperson, told New Vision yesterday.
Those with the old voters’ cards that are valid can use them though they are not necessary, Ochola added.
“When the national identification cards are issued, they will be used to identify voters. There were no plans to issue voters cards,†he remarked.
He explained that the voters’ register contains a person’s photograph and village of origin, which are the details that will be used to identify a voter.
Ochola noted that during the voters display exercise, voters reviewed their details, which will appear on the voters’ register.
He disclosed that the voters’ registers were ready and had been displayed on EC’s website.
Ochola said during the nominations for presidential candidates, EC blocked the voters’ registration identification numbers to prevent candidates from copying the voters’ number without going to the villages.
He said the electoral body did not give the registers to political parties, fearing that they would use details of voters without meeting them in their villages.
“The voters’ registration numbers are still blocked, but they will be reinstated after the nomination of MPs on November 24 and 25,†Ochola said.
Internal affairs minister Kirunda Kivejinja recently told Parliament that the finance ministry had not provided funds in the national budget to enable the issuing of national identity cards.
He was presenting a statement to Parliament on steps being taken to set up a National Security Information System.
Kivejinja told MPs that 64m euros (sh189b) was to be spent on setting up the system and procuring equipment from Germany. He said a German firm, Mühlbauer Technology Group, had been single-sourced by the Government to set up the system.
THE Electoral Commission will not issue voters cards for people who registered to vote during next year’s general elections.
“Voters cards are not going to be issued this time round. As long as your bio-data is on the national voters’ register, you will be identified and allowed to vote,†Charles Ochola, the Electoral Commission (EC) spokesperson, told New Vision yesterday.
Those with the old voters’ cards that are valid can use them though they are not necessary, Ochola added.
“When the national identification cards are issued, they will be used to identify voters. There were no plans to issue voters cards,†he remarked.
He explained that the voters’ register contains a person’s photograph and village of origin, which are the details that will be used to identify a voter.
Ochola noted that during the voters display exercise, voters reviewed their details, which will appear on the voters’ register.
He disclosed that the voters’ registers were ready and had been displayed on EC’s website.
Ochola said during the nominations for presidential candidates, EC blocked the voters’ registration identification numbers to prevent candidates from copying the voters’ number without going to the villages.
He said the electoral body did not give the registers to political parties, fearing that they would use details of voters without meeting them in their villages.
“The voters’ registration numbers are still blocked, but they will be reinstated after the nomination of MPs on November 24 and 25,†Ochola said.
Internal affairs minister Kirunda Kivejinja recently told Parliament that the finance ministry had not provided funds in the national budget to enable the issuing of national identity cards.
He was presenting a statement to Parliament on steps being taken to set up a National Security Information System.
Kivejinja told MPs that 64m euros (sh189b) was to be spent on setting up the system and procuring equipment from Germany. He said a German firm, Mühlbauer Technology Group, had been single-sourced by the Government to set up the system.