THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) has intensified preparations for the harmonised elections set for Monday with deployment of election officers and material to polling stations set to start today.
In an interview yesterday, Bulawayo provincial elections officer Mr Innocent Ncube said deployment of polling officers will start today.
“As Bulawayo province our preparations are now at an advanced stage. In terms of human resources, most of the people have been trained and the last group is completing training today and deployment is tomorrow,” he said.
Mr Ncube said they had already begun pitching tents in Bulawayo. “In terms of pitching of tents, we have 108 tents that must be pitched in Bulawayo province. They began pitching them on 22 July. We are hoping that by tomorrow when the polling officers are deployed, all the tents would have been pitched,” he said.
He said between today and tomorrow, polling officers would be setting up their furniture and also collecting materials.
He said they had secured adeqaute vehicles for the deployment of personnel to polling stations.
Mr Ncube could not disclose the number of polling officers to be deployed in Bulawayo but however said the number of registered voters determine the number of officers.
“At a polling station with 199 and below registered voters we would have a presiding officer and five polling officers, making them six. Polling stations with between 200 and 499 registered voters will have a presiding officer and seven polling officers each.
Those polling sations with between 500 and 1 000 voters will have a presiding officer and nine polling officers each,” said Mr Ncube. He said there are 428 polling stations in Bulawayo and 29 Command Centres.
There are 12 Command centres in constituencies and one command centre in each district as well as one provincial command centre.
“For local authority elections, the winner is declared at the ward command centre, for National Assembly the winner is declared at the constituency command centre after collating results from the wards. They have to wait for all the wards to submit results and then declare the winner,” he said.
He said this time around Presidential results must get to the District Command centre from the 29 wards.
“When they have been received from all the wards, the District elections officer immediately takes them to Harare so that we meet the Statutory requirement that results must be out within five days,” said Mr Ncube.
He said to be allowed to vote, people must produce a national identity card be it a metal, plastic or paper waiting pass with a clear photograph and identity number or a valid passport and they must be registered.
He said a driver’s licence is not acceptable but those accompanying people with special conditions can produce it. “If that assistant is registered to vote at that particular polling station and intend to cast their vote after assisting, be it the elderly or disabled, a driver’s licence would not be accepted.
“A person accompanying people with various handicaps must be 18 years and above and can only assist one person,” said Mr Ncube.
He said party regalia was strictly prohibited within 300 metres of a polling station on the day of polling.
“We urge people to continue being tolerant to each other as this year we’re working differently. Police have made it clear during our multi-liaison meetings that they willl not hesitate to arrest law breakers,” he said.
Mr Ncube said campaigns stop 24 hours before polling day.
Meanwhile, Zec yesterday sent information to voters through sms stating the polling stations where they will cast their ballot. Chronicle
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