Bulilima leadership mobilise people for voter registration

Mthabisi Tshuma, Chronicle Reporter

TRADITIONAL leaders and MPs from Bulilima District have joined hands to mobilise people to register to vote.
Bulilima district has two constituencies, Bulilima West and Bulilima East.

A meeting was held last Sunday at Chief Masendu’s homestead in Masendu Village between traditional leaders and the legislators on how best to ensure that people register to vote.

The meeting was attended by Chief Masendu, Chief Mpini, Chief Madlambudzi, Chief Kandana, headman from the district, Minister of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Cde Mangaliso Ndlovu, Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Dr Evelyn Ndlovu and Deputy Minister of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services Cde Dingumuzi Phuti, local councillors and Zanu-PF Bulilima district leadership.

Dr Ndlovu is Bulilima proportional representative MP while Cde Phuti is Bulilima West MP with Cde Mangaliso Ndlovu being legislator for Bulilima East.

The two constituencies risk being combined if few people register to vote by the time the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) conducts the delimitation process.

Delimitation is the process of dividing the country into constituencies and wards for the purposes of elections of persons to Parliament and councils.

The process is carried out in terms of sections 160 and 161 of the Constitution.

Delimitation involves coming up with a minimum threshold of registered voters to make the country’s 210 National Assembly constituencies and is conducted using the number of registered voters in an administrative jurisdiction countrywide.

According to the current statistics of about 5, 6 million registered voters, a constituency should have around 27 000 registered voters.

Bulilima West currently has 15 966 voters while Bulilima East has 17 977 registered voters.

Other affected constituencies in Matabeleland South province with low registered voters include Beitbridge West with 16 427, Gwanda North with 16 173, Gwanda South with 15 223, Insiza South 14 664, Mangwe with 18 848, Matobo North with 19 103 and Matobo South with 15 284 registered voters.

Zec has started the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) process countrywide with Matabeleland South province having 223 centres.

Speaking at the crunch meeting, Cde Ndlovu called upon youths to utilise the period of the BVR process in order to fully exercise their right.

“It is so worrying that during the voter registration process that was conducted last year reportedly just a few hundreds of youths managed to register though l am yet to receive the actual number.

“Young people should be made to realise that this month is precious to them in ensuring they take part,” said Cde Ndlovu.

Cde Ndlovu said if constituencies are combined it will derail development in the district.

“As legislators we receive Constituency Development Funds (CDF) from Government in order to enhance development.

“As Bulilima district we are currently receiving two CDF and if we are combined it means only one CDF will be disbursed which will affect the facilitation of developmental projects,” he said.

Education Minister Dr Ndlovu seconded Headman Mbimba’s suggestion of decentralising the mobilisation process where people not registered to vote are identified from the cells.

“I concur with the sentiments by Headman Mbimba that we can curb the root problem by starting to identify the loopholes from down going upwards.

“If we are able to go district by district up to the wards we can achieve in ensuring that more people register to vote,” said Dr Ndlovu.

Cde Phuti said a collective effort will go a long way in making sure that the delimitation process does not affect Bulilima district.

“As leaders in our communities through uniting for a good cause we are poised to changing our lives and in that manner we have to mobilise more young people to register to vote.