Zimbabwe voters roll myths debunked

ZIMBABWE'S VOTERS ROLL USED FOR ANY ELECTION IS POLLING STATION BASED: NO NATIONAL, CONSTITUENCY OR WARD VOTERS ROLL IS USED FOR ANY ELECTION

Most if not all of the cacophonous noise being made about or around national, constituency and ward voters roll is either ignorant, misplaced, misguided, political posturing or downright mischievous.

This is because – in terms of the Electoral Act – none of these voters rolls that folks are making lots of noise and going to court about are used for the purposes of polling or voting in any election.

Asking for voters rolls that are not used in any election is as futile as asking for and making noise about a road that you know or you ought to know that it will most definitely not take you to the destination where you need to go.

The proposition that an election is a voters roll is meaningful, but only if you know what you're talking about, technically or praxis wise, otherwise it's all hot air.

This is what section 20(4a) of the Electoral Act says about national, constituency and ward voters rolls:

The Commission may [not shall but may] prepare and maintain, in printed or electronic form, a consolidated national voters roll and a consolidated voters roll for any constituency or ward, but such rolls shall not be used for the purposes of polling in any election.

There's no updated, consolidated or whatever national, constituency or ward voters roll that is used for any election in Zimbabwe.

So, the law is in black and white that national, constituency and ward voters "shall not be used for the purposes of polling in any election".

The only voters roll that is "used for the purposes of polling in any election" in Zimbabwe is the polling station voters roll, which is provided under section 22A of the Electoral Act as follows:

(1) The Commission shall [not may but shall]—
(a) subject to section 51, determine—
(i) the places where polling stations are to be situated within each ward and constituency for the purposes of all elections in terms of this Act; and
(ii) the areas within the ward or constituency concerned that are to be served by each such polling station; and

(b) subject to Parts IV and V, prepare a voters roll for each polling station area determined in terms of paragraph (a)(ii), on which roll shall be entered the names of all registered voters ordinarily resident within the area.

Provided that where the estimated number of voters to be served by any polling station exceeds the number determined by the Commission to be manageable, the Commission may establish two or more independent polling stations to serve the same polling station area, and the voters' roll for that area shall be split between such polling stations accordingly.

(2) The Commission shall consult all interested parties when determining the location of polling stations and their areas for the purposes of subsection (1).

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, where a voters roll has been prepared for a polling station area—
(a) voters who are registered on that roll shall cast their votes in any election at the polling station for whose area the roll was prepared, unless they are permitted by this Act to vote by post;
(b) the provisions of this Act applicable to or in respect of constituencies and wards, and constituency and ward voters rolls, shall apply, with any necessary changes, to or in respect of the polling station area and such voters roll.

There you have it.

The mind boggles at how folks can get so self-indulgently determined to break their legs, falling on each other, over demanding voters rolls that are useless "for the purposes of polling in any election".

Only polling station voters roll are used for each of the three elections that make up Zimbabwe's harmonised general election, namely, the presidential or national election, the parliamentary or constituency election and the local authority or ward election.

Rationally, folks should be clamouring for polling station voters rolls, whether they are local authority [ward] candidates or parliamentary [constituency] candidates or presidential [national] candidates. It's all about polling station voters roll. Anything else grandstanding noise.

Zimbabwe's voters roll is truly based on the dictum that the best politics is local. The country's voters roll is localised. This is why the most important election return [or "V" Form] is the V11, it is the only election return that directly speaks to and matches the voters roll, that is why it is considered the most critical source document or the most critical election residue.

If you are an aspiring councillor in a local authority [ward] election, you need all polling station voters rolls for your ward; if you are a parliamentary candidate [constituency] election, you need all polling station voters rolls for your constituency; and if you are a presidential [national] candidate, you need all polling station voters rolls in the country.

Every candidate is entitled to as many polling station voters rolls as are polling stations in the election they're contesting.

In fact, candidates have been given polling station voters rolls; but if right now for whatever reason there's any candidate in any of the three elections, who does not have polling station candidates for his or her contest or election, then that candidate is bad news, and should not be a candidate at all.

The harmonised general election in Zimbabwe is polling station, stupid.

Without a polling station voters roll, a candidate will not have a V11 for that polling station where voting is done and the only place where original votes are counted and recorded.

 So, you ain't got no nothing, without a V11 for each and every polling station in your ward - if you're a local authority candidate - or for each and every polling station in your constituency - if you're a parliamentary candidate or for each and every polling station in the country - if you're a presidential candidate!