ONLY HALF OF POTENTIAL ELECTORATE REGISTERED SO FAR

 With only a fortnight to go before the end of the voter registration period ahead of the Mozambican municipal elections scheduled for 20 November, just 50 per cent of the estimate municipal electorate has registered, reports the latest issue of the “Mozambique Political Process Bulletin”, produced by AWEPA (Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa) and CIP (Centre for Public Integrity).

The figures from STAE (Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat) show that 1,877,813 people have been registered, which is only 54% of the 3,495,566 voters expected. STAE spokesperson Lucas Jose, cited by the Bulletin, claimed that turnout at the registration posts is now increasing, as STAE steps up its supervision and voter education efforts.But there are great variations across the country. Thus the new municipality of Nyamayabue, in Tete province, was only expected to register 4,623 people but has already signed up 5,901 voters. Equipment problems are continuing in some registration posts. Thus in the Namicopo primary school in the northern city of Nampula, the computerized registration equipment continues to break down regularly. In another school, in the Muhala Expansion area of Nampula, people still have to wait for an hour before they can register. The “Bulletin” also reports that STAE has expelled three members of registration brigades in the southern municipality of Vilankulo for mistreating would-be voters, and refusing to accept valid identification documents. STAE also found that a security guard at the Fraternidade Secondary School in the northern city had been telling people who arrived to register not to bother, because the main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, had warned there would be war if elections are held this year. STAE believed that this disinformation had reduced the number of people registering at that post. In fact, Renamo had not promised a return to war, although it did threaten that it would make it impossible to hold either the elections or the voter registration. But since registration began, on 20 May, there have been no reports of registration posts sabotaged by Renamo. Last Sunday a registration post in the Maputo George Dimitrov neighbourhood was attacked and unknown thieves made off with a computer, a camera and a printer. But this seemed a simple criminal act, without political motivation.