Views across the board said voters should be biometrically enrolled for the country’s next elections, due late this year or early next year.
Biometric voter registration has software that captures citizens’ data, including fingerprints and a digital photograph, directly in the field. In Zimbabwe far placed villagers in remote areas usually travel long distances just to register to vote. At times many people miss out on registering because of the high costs involved in travelling.
‘Biometric registration doesn’t involve much labour. There are handy mobile kits that are used and officials using these could travel the entire country to do the job in less than four months,’ one commentator said.
The biometric system is also known for doing away with multiple registrations and voting, because it can easily detect duplicates.
A systems analyst in Harare, who has monitored elections in several African countries, confirmed that apart from taking photos a biometric system will capture finger-prints in order to facilitate identification and weeding out would be multiple registered voters.
‘Taking one’s finger prints guarantees that there is only one entry into the register, since every individual has distinctive finger prints. A complete and accurate voters list is the starting point of a credible election, and an election that is credible must also prevent voters from voting more than once and unregistered voters from voting,’ said the analyst, who asked not to be named.
An MDC-T legislator told SW Radio Africa on Wednesday that the use of biometrics is the best solution to ensure free, fair and transparent elections.
MDC-T MP for Masvingo Urban and deputy Minister of Youth, Tongai Matutu, last year introduced a motion in Parliament for the adoption of a biometric system, which is now in use in many SADC countries. The motion was seconded by Makoni South MP, Pishai Muchauraya.
MP Muchauraya told us they were now waiting for contributions from the Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa before they close debate on the motion.
‘The motion was extensively debated and if adopted it will help solve this Mudede crisis. It has many advantages rather than disadvantages. Officials use light portable electronic gadgets to capture data that it becomes impossible for people to cheat when voting,’ the MP said.
Tobaiwa Mudede is the Registrar-General in the inclusive government and has been in that position since the early 1980’s. He has been criticized by international human rights organizations for falsifying and manipulating the voters roll to ensure Robert Mugabe’s ‘electoral victories’ against the MDC.
It’s been reported that a South African based company has provided quotation of $20 million for biometric voter registration for the whole of Zimbabwe.
The latest MDC demands come in the wake of revelations by independent election watchdog, the Zimbabwe Election Support Network, that the voters’ roll is full of dead people and includes names of children, some as young as four years.
---
Autor(en)/Author(s): Tichaona Sibanda
Quelle/Source: SW Radio Africa, 26.01.2011
Bitte besuchen Sie/Please visit:
