We can’t force people to register – ECN

Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) commissioner Gerson Tjihenuna says there is no law compelling people to register to vote.

“Take the example of the International University of Management, the student population is close to 20 000. You expect some of them to be from that constituency, but yet we are seeing a low turnout. We have been active in the media almost on a weekly basis, if not on a daily basis, on social media, etc,” he said on Friday.

The ECN noted that a total of 989 367 eligible Namibians have registered as voters inside the country and at all Namibian diplomatic missions abroad.

This represents 61% of the country’s eligible voters that have registered between 3 June and 13 July.

Tjihenuna appealed to political parties and civil society organisations to mobilise and encourage people to register before the deadline.

Meanwhile, ECN chief electoral and referenda officer Peter Shaama on Thursday reiterated the commission’s stance that there will be no extension of the voters’ registration period and there will be no supplementary registration of voters.

This is due to limitations requiring the ECN to finalise the provisional voters’ register for display, inspection and objection, according to a ruling by the Electoral Tribunal and Electoral Court.

Additionally, Shaama said the ECN cannot redeploy the registration points that are empty during the set period as the points must be there until the last day of the particular period.

“If there are areas that have been identified that are not covered, it’s where we can focus and that’s where the issue of redeployment of the resources becomes critical in this case, to make sure that instead of having two kits there, it’s now slow, the turnout is now slow,” he said.

The Namibia Statistics Agency last week announced that about 1,6 million Namibians are eligible to vote in the November presidential and National Assembly elections.

This number is made up of 763 700 men and 852 100 women.

Social justice activist Shaun Gariseb has described the low voter turnout thus far as worrisome.

“The more people that are eligible to vote, the more potential for voter participation. I hope the number of voter registration increases in the remaining days,” Gariseb says.

Political analyst Ndumba Kamwanyah says while it’s true that the ECN cannot legally compel registration, there are several proactive steps the commission can take to enhance voters’ registration.

“The commission can launch widespread campaigns to educate citizens about the importance of voting and how to register,” he says.

Kamwanyah further suggests that the ECN should allow the use of national identity cards for the voting process and streamline the process to reduce barriers.

“This would eliminate the need for a separate voters’ registration card, making it easier for citizens to participate,” Kamwanyah says.