Least numbers register to vote in Matebeleland

THE Civil Registry Department will launch a National Identity Card Blitz from 1 April as Government steps up efforts to allow citizens to acquire documents necessary to register for next year's general elections.

The programme will run until September, depending on the uptake and demand, a senior official said yesterday.

The Government has already approved the budget and teams have started preparing for the massive exercise.

Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Deputy Minister Ruth Mavhunga Maboyi told Sunday News  that the programme will be mainly targeting rural areas where villagers have been complaining about difficulties in accessing national identity documents.

"The exercise is starting on 1 April and tentatively will run until September.

Teams both mobile and fixed will be deployed mainly in rural areas where some people have always complained that they have difficulties in accessing IDs.

Yes, some will be based at schools as they are most convenient but we want to cover the whole country."

She said the exercise will give people the opportunity to register for next year's elections. Voter registration is open throughout the year at designated offices but prior to elections, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) also embarks on mobile voter registration.

The country will hold its harmonised elections next year and ZEC will conclude its first phase of mobile voter registration tomorrow.

It started at the beginning of February.

However, it has emerged that some people said they did not register because they did not have identity documents.

"We do not have numbers as yet to say we are targeting so many people (for IDs) but we will adjust the programme according to needs and progress of the exercise," she said.

Last week, the election body released statistics which showed that by 22 February more than 49 000  people had registered for the first time to vote during the month long exercise.

The figures show that more males — 26 780 registered compared to females — 22 856.

Harare has the highest number at 16 437 followed by Mashonaland West which registered 5 275 new voters.

Matabeleland North and South have the least number of new voters at 2 091 and 2 244 respectively.

In Bulawayo 4 219 new voters registered during the period.

According to statistics released by ZEC, there were 32 595 transfers which were recorded during the exercise.

Again, Harare is leading with 7 523 while Matabeleland South anchors with just 998 people who transferred to new voting places.

Bulawayo has 1 558 while Matabeleland South has recorded 1 093 transfers.

The number of voters in each province will be used for the delimitation exercise that will determine the number of constituencies in each province.

The voter registration exercise, will however, not benefit those who would want to participate in the by-elections slated for 26 March.