MUTARE– A cross section of civic activists and political parties has met with mixed feelings reports that Zimbabwe will adopt a biometric voter’s registration system in the 2018 harmonized elections.
Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe, one of many opposition political outfits, has poured cold water on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission’s (ZEC) bid to introduce a biometric voters’ registration system for the 2018 harmonized elections.
RDZ spokesperson Pishayi Muchauraya said this move did not answer Zimbabwe’s problems during election which he said were in practice not in the principle.
He said government had been too compromised to be entrusted with custody of the system.
“Who will keep the passwords of that system and where will they store it? We cannot trust the government because it has been compromised and as RDZ we are highly skeptical of the timing of this system soon after the President has come from China, may be they were perfecting ways of rigging the system.
“African dictators can never sanction any system that will not give them an advantage when it comes to elections,” said Muchauraya.
A civic activist who requested anonymity said this system despite its advantages was more suited to the developed world that has adequate resources to finance its proper administration.
He questioned how a government which was currently failing to meet its recurrent expenditure of civil servants’ salaries would be able to afford the system.
“The efficiency of biometric system will be highly compromised in our context because such a system is more suited to the developed world than the developing nations.
However the move has received support from the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) , which released a Press Statement calling for comprehensive consultations.
ZESN director Rindai Chipfunde Vava said the monitoring body is urging the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to work with other electoral stakeholders in expediting the most convenient and appropriate biometric system.
She said government must put in place adequate resources for all the processes to be done in time, particularly voter education to create awareness among the voting public.
The biometric systems touted to prevent the possibilities of multiple voting during elections, are highly advanced systems which work at a great speed identifying millions of voters quickly and unmistakably using specific biometric features like finger print or iris.
“Adequate resources must be put in place to ensure that all the various processes are done in time for the new systems to be successful.
“There is need for the Commission to conduct comprehensive voter education on the new developments to create awareness amongst the electorate to build confidence in Zimbabwe’s electoral processes,” read part of the Statement.
ZESN said it welcomed biometric voters’ registration system in anticipation that it will enhance security and privacy of voters’ information and improve the integrity and reliability of voters’ information, although it expressed some reservations.
“Although the implementation of the biometric voters’ registration will enhance the transparency and credibility of the voting process, there is need for proper mechanisms to be put in place to ensure the existence of an enabling political environment during and after the elections.
“Given the limited time to the 2018 elections, ZESN appeals to the government for financial support for the full implementation of the polling station voting system and the adaptation of the biometric voter registration system.”
