A local independent election watchdog has dragged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) to the High Court seeking an order directing the electoral management body to release a soft copy of the voters’ roll.
Section 21 (3) of the Electoral Act makes it mandatory for
Zec to provide the voters’ roll to any person who requests it.
The status and credibility of the voters’ roll has been
under spotlight after data analysts such as Team Pachedu exposed a number of anomalies
in the document and warned that this could lead to another disputed election in
2023.
Zec has angrily reacted to the exposé and instead filed a police report against
Team Pachedu after accusing the activists of ‘terrorist’ activities meant to destabilise
the country’s electoral processes.
Independent election watchdog, Project Launch 263 in a High
Court application dated November 28 accused the electoral management body of
refusing to release the document to hide its alleged plot to rig the 2023
elections.
Project Launch 263 executive director Youngerson Matete
said Zec’s refusal was patently unlawful, unjustified and unreasonable.
“I, therefore, submit that the respondent’s action is
unlawful, unjustified and grossly unreasonable and actuated by bad faith,”
Matete said in his founding affidavit.
“The reason that it is enhancing security features on the
electronic voters’ roll is disingenuous and unsustainable.
“It’s a smokescreen being used to effectively deny us the
copy.”
Matete said Zec’s denial to release the voters’ roll was a
clear indication that the country may not have free and fair elections next
year.
He said Project Launch 263 is being denied an opportunity
to meaningfully participate in the upcoming delimitation exercise — the
creation of new electoral boundaries.
“Without access to the voters’ roll, applicant cannot be
guaranteed of a free, fair election in terms of the law,” he said.
“Furthermore, through the voters’ roll the applicant is
able to participate in the delimitation exercise informed by details of the
registered voters.
“Presently the applicant is unable to meaningfully
participate in the ongoing exercise which will soon be concluded.”
The opposition and other interested groups have been
demanding the release of the voters’ roll for an independent audit, but Zec has
pegged fees to access the document beyond reach.
Zec is demanding as much as US$187 000 for a physical copy
of the voters’ roll.
“The respondent’s offer of a hard copy is not being made in
good faith because the cost of obtaining it is vastly different from the
electronic soft copy,” Matete said
“In this regard the cost of the hard copy is US$200 plus
printing cost of us$1 per page which translates to US$187 000.
“On the other hand the cost of obtaining a copy is just
US$200. The applicant can’t manage the cost of a hard copy.
“Furthermore, the electronic form is portable and can be
analysed with relative ease, whilst a hard copy comprising 187 000 pages is
practically impossible to carry and analyse.
“I am also advised that it takes 30 days to print the hard
copy and this is evidence of the fact that it is not easy to work with a
printed copy.”
Matete’s Project Launch 263 filed the court application
through their lawyers, Wintertons Legal Practitioners.
Past independent audits of the voters’ roll have exposed
various irregularities such as the presence of ghost voters and dead people.
In June this year, Zec said it removed over 32 010 deceased
persons from the voter's roll in accordance with the Electoral Act.
In November 2021, Zec said it removed “22 656 dead people”
from the voters’ roll. Standard
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