Special voting dates set

Prosper Ndlovu Senior Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) has started recruiting polling officers to conduct the special voting exercise to cater for electoral officers who would be posted in stations outside their wards. The electoral body has scheduled the advance poll for 14 and 15 July, two weeks ahead of normal voting.
ZEC chairperson Justice Rita Makarau yesterday said they have engaged the polling officers. “The process would be supervised by ZEC officials and staff seconded to ZEC, mainly civil servants and those who work for parastatals.

“We have started recruiting and our target is 150 polling officers. We are going to review the number of officers if there is a need to do so,” said Justice Makarau in an interview from Harare.

Yesterday the electoral body announced in a notice that it has established 209 special voting polling stations countrywide.
ZEC also stated that voting would commence at 7am and end at 7pm.

The exercise mainly covers members of the uniformed forces and electoral officers who would be on duty on polling day outside their wards. In the past, electoral officers did not get the opportunity to exercise their right to vote.

In Bulawayo, special polling centres will be at the City Hall, Nketa Primary, Emakhandeni Secondary and Magwegwe Hall.
In Matabeleland North, centres will be set in each of the seven districts.

In Binga, voting would be done at Binga Library, Lusulu Secondary and Siabuwa Primary.
In Bubi District there would be two centres, Tatazela Hall and Siganda RG Sub-Office.

Hwange District will have three stations, Lwendulu Hall, Chinotimba Primary and Ndangababi Primary.
Voting in Lupane will take place at Lupane, Daluka Primary schools and Jotsholo Clinic.

Nesigwe Secondary School and Nkayi Pre-School have been selected for Nkayi district.
In Tsholotsho, voting would be done at Thabisa Pre-School, Sipepa Primary and Pumula Sub-Office while in Umguza the stations are Umguza District Council Hall and Nyamandlovu Primary.

In Matabeleland South’s Insiza district voting would be done at Shangani Primary, Mthwakazi Hall, Avoca Secondary and Singwango Secondary.
In Matobo, the centres are Tshelanyemba High School, Minda, St Joseph and Reps Primary schools.

The DA’s boardroom, Zezani High School, Tshitulipasi and Toporo Primary schools would be used in Beitbridge.
As for Umzingwane, the centres are Esigodini, Mawabeni and Long Field and Silobini Primary schools.

In Mangwe the selected centres are Allan Redfern Primary, Bulu, Sangulube and Khalanyoni Secondary schools.
Madlambuzi and Ndolwane Secondary, Ntoli and Ntunugwe Primary schools would be used in Bulililima district.

In Gwanda District, voting would be done at Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Polytechnic (Old site), Manama, Mtshabezi and Selonga Secondary schools.
In the Midlands, voting would take place at Hama High School and Stranger Hall in Chirumanzu district.

In Gokwe North, voting would be at the Government Complex Canteen while in Gokwe South the venues are the Government Complex boardroom and Batanai High School.

Voting in Gweru would be at the DA’s office and Insukamini Primary School.
In Kwekwe polling stations are Rio-Tinto, Fatima and Kwekwe High schools and Redcliff Primary. The selected stations for Mberengwa are Selukwe and Mberengwa Primary schools and Zvomukonde and Rusununguko Secondary schools and Mataga Council Hall.

In Zvishavane, voting would be done at the Government Complex. Polling centres have also been set for Masvingo in all the seven districts with Zaka having four centres, Zaka Primary, Matara and Chitonhora Secondary schools and Rudhanda High School.

Mwenezi polling centres are Maranda High School, DA’s complex (Court Room), Rutenga and Mwenezi RDC Halls.
Masvingo district will use the DA’s boardroom, Mushagashe Training Centre, Renco Mine Community Hall and Mapanzure and Bere Secondary schools.

In Gutu, the polling centres are Gutu RDC boardroom, Batanai, Gert Neil Primary schools, Chikwerengwe, Rafamoyo and Nerupiri Secondary schools.

Voting in Chiredzi would take place at Chitsanga, Mkwasine Jele and Chikombedzi Halls, Chibwedziva, Ndali and Davata schools as well as Sango Border Post.

In Chivi the centres are Chivi DA’s courtroom, Masunda North and Ngundu Halt Secondary schools.
Bikita District would have six centres, Nebarwe, Nyahunda and Chitsanga Primary schools, Gwindingwi, Mashoko and Rupare High Schools.
According to ZEC, concerned officers are required to apply for this special facility 16 days before the ordinary election date.

Specific ballot papers would be made for them and be put in envelopes which would be sealed to preserve the secrecy of their votes before being sent to their respective wards.

Justice Makarau also said ZEC has started designing ballot papers but could not disclose how many would be printed for both the advance and the main election.

“Ballot papers are being designed by ZEC and we are yet to officially announce how many would be printed and which company would be given the tender to print them. We will put a notice once that has been done,” said Justice Makarau.

She could not be drawn into saying how many officers had so far applied for the advance poll.
Turning to the on-going mandatory voter registration and education, Justice Makarau urged the electorate to register before the end of the process next week.

“The registration process is still in progress and we are yet to get statistics from the Registrar General’s Office as to how many have registered since the start of the second voter registration exercise. The process would continue up to 9 July and people can still register,” she said.