News / National
Zanu-PF embarks on a massive voter registration exercise
25 Apr 2015 at 09:41hrs | Views
ZANU-PF has embarked on a massive exercise to encourage its supporters to register as voters for the June 10 by-elections in 16 constituencies countrywide.
In Matabeleland North, where the party is intent on reprising the Tsholotsho North seat, provincial party chairperson Richard Moyo yesterday said they had deployed teams in the constituency to encourage members to register as voters.
"We have, like all other provinces, been engaged in the restructuring exercise. After restructuring, we would then encourage all the members, old and new, to register as voters. Those who have voted before are encouraged to check their names in the voters' roll," said Moyo.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission on Wednesday started a pilot voter registration exercise for the by elections in 14 constituencies, namely Harare East, Kambuzuma, Glen View South, Dzivarasekwa, Highfield West, Kuwadzana, Pumula, Makokoba, Luveve, Tsholotsho North, Lobengula, Mpopoma-Pelandaba, Mbizo and Chikanga-Dangamvura.
The exercise will end next Tuesday.
Fourteen of the 16 seats became vacant following the expulsion of 21 former MDC-T MPs from Parliament after they defected from the Morgan Tsvangirai led party to form MDC Renewal. The other two seats were vacated by Zanu-PF's Temba Mliswa and Didymus Mutasa, who were expelled.
Moyo dismissed a report by the NewsDay newspaper claiming that that Tsholotsho North constituency will have 72 polling centres from 59 in the 2013 elections.
Information Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo will battle for the constituency with Gertrude Sibanda, who is linked to the MDC Renewal, and Busani Ncube, who is associated with the MDC-T. Both, however, filed nomination papers as independent candidates.
"There's no such thing, there're no changes in the polling centres in the constituency," said Moyo.
Prof Moyo also posted on Twitter: "Please get the facts right. Tsholotsho North had 70 and not 59 polling stations in 2013. Facts matter!"
Moyo said the party was confident of winning back the constituency with huge margins.
"We hear that Tsvangirai will be moving around holding rallies in constituencies including Tsholotsho North. We wonder why he's doing that since his party elected not to take part in the by-elections. It shows that there're candidates they're secretly supporting," he said.
"We're not bothered though, even if Tsvangirai addresses rallies here. We're winning that constituency all the same. We're already counting it as ours."
Prof Moyo, after filing papers at the nomination court at the Tredgold Magistrates Courts in Bulawayo last week, expressed confidence in Zanu-PF wining back the "orphaned" constituency with "telling numbers."
By-elections in Mt Darwin West and Chirumanzu-Zibagwe last month saw the Zec register thousands of new voters – a vast majority of whom were Zanu-PF supporters after the MDC-T boycotted. In Chirumanzu-Zibagwe, 10,000 new voters were recruited. In Mt Darwin West, 1,501 first time voters registered.
Zanu-PF hopes its new membership drive will see thousands of first time voters taking to the polls on June 10.
In Matabeleland North, where the party is intent on reprising the Tsholotsho North seat, provincial party chairperson Richard Moyo yesterday said they had deployed teams in the constituency to encourage members to register as voters.
"We have, like all other provinces, been engaged in the restructuring exercise. After restructuring, we would then encourage all the members, old and new, to register as voters. Those who have voted before are encouraged to check their names in the voters' roll," said Moyo.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission on Wednesday started a pilot voter registration exercise for the by elections in 14 constituencies, namely Harare East, Kambuzuma, Glen View South, Dzivarasekwa, Highfield West, Kuwadzana, Pumula, Makokoba, Luveve, Tsholotsho North, Lobengula, Mpopoma-Pelandaba, Mbizo and Chikanga-Dangamvura.
The exercise will end next Tuesday.
Fourteen of the 16 seats became vacant following the expulsion of 21 former MDC-T MPs from Parliament after they defected from the Morgan Tsvangirai led party to form MDC Renewal. The other two seats were vacated by Zanu-PF's Temba Mliswa and Didymus Mutasa, who were expelled.
Moyo dismissed a report by the NewsDay newspaper claiming that that Tsholotsho North constituency will have 72 polling centres from 59 in the 2013 elections.
"There's no such thing, there're no changes in the polling centres in the constituency," said Moyo.
Prof Moyo also posted on Twitter: "Please get the facts right. Tsholotsho North had 70 and not 59 polling stations in 2013. Facts matter!"
Moyo said the party was confident of winning back the constituency with huge margins.
"We hear that Tsvangirai will be moving around holding rallies in constituencies including Tsholotsho North. We wonder why he's doing that since his party elected not to take part in the by-elections. It shows that there're candidates they're secretly supporting," he said.
"We're not bothered though, even if Tsvangirai addresses rallies here. We're winning that constituency all the same. We're already counting it as ours."
Prof Moyo, after filing papers at the nomination court at the Tredgold Magistrates Courts in Bulawayo last week, expressed confidence in Zanu-PF wining back the "orphaned" constituency with "telling numbers."
By-elections in Mt Darwin West and Chirumanzu-Zibagwe last month saw the Zec register thousands of new voters – a vast majority of whom were Zanu-PF supporters after the MDC-T boycotted. In Chirumanzu-Zibagwe, 10,000 new voters were recruited. In Mt Darwin West, 1,501 first time voters registered.
Zanu-PF hopes its new membership drive will see thousands of first time voters taking to the polls on June 10.
Source - chronicle
