admin
Wallace Ruzvidzo
Herald Reporter
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) will today preside over the National Council of Chiefs elections, marking the first stage of this year’s harmonised polls.
The elections will be supervised by ZEC Provincial Elections Officers in all the eight non-metropolitan provinces in the country starting at 10am.
An Electoral College comprising substantive Chiefs from provinces, will elect 36 Chiefs to the National Council.
Manicaland will have five council members, Mashonaland Central (4), Mashonaland East (4), Mashonaland West (4), Masvingo (5), Matabeleland North (5), Matabeleland South (4) and Midlands (5).
When the meeting of the Electoral College is reconvened, the presiding officer shall conduct a secret poll in relation to the vacancies to be filled by the Electoral College.
No member of the Electoral College shall cast more than one vote for a candidate.
After the members of the Electoral College have voted, the presiding officer shall in the presence of the members and the candidates, cause the votes to be counted.
After counting of the votes, the presiding officer shall prepare a list with the candidates, with the candidates who received the most votes appearing first, at the top of the list.
If two or more candidates have received the same number of votes, the presiding officer shall arrange for fresh vote to take place in respect of those candidates.
At the second poll, the candidate who receives the greatest number of votes shall be declared to have been duly elected with effect from the day of such declaration.
If after the second poll a vacancy has not been filled because two or more candidates have received the same number of votes, the presiding officer shall, in the presence of the members of the electoral college and candidates draw lots to determine the candidates who shall be deemed to be duly elected.
After drawing lots, the presiding officer shall declare the candidate(s) concerned to have been duly elected with the effect from the day of such declaration.
Any declaration by the presiding officer shall be final and subject to reversal only on petition to the electoral court.
ZEC’s vice chairperson Ambassador Rodney Kiwa told The Herald last night that everything was in place for the holding of seamless National Council of Chiefs polls.
He said the training of relevant personnel as well as the procurement of necessary material had been done to ensure the elections are a success.
“Yes, all is set for the election of Chiefs Provincial Councils. A workshop on the conduct of the Chiefs elections was held on 21 and 22 July 2023. Electoral officers have been recruited and trained as well,” he said.
Amb Kiwa said after the elections, the results would be announced to the public through a Government gazette.
“After the holding of the poll, the presiding officer shall notify the commission and a gazette notice shall be published notifying the public on the results of the election,” he said.
Thereafter, on August 10 the elections for the president and deputy president of the Council of Chiefs will be held.
“Section 285 of the Constitution on National Council and Provincial Assemblies of Chiefs subsection (6) provide that President and Deputy President of the National Council of Chiefs are elected for a term of five years and are eligible for re-election for one further such term, but a person who has served two terms as Deputy President is eligible for election as President.”
Meanwhile, in keeping with all legal requirements pertaining to the holding of the August 23 general elections, the publication of polling stations was done yesterday.
ZEC is on record promising that failure is not an option in overseeing a successful electoral period.
Online Reporter