from ARNOLD MULENGA in Lusaka, Zambia
Zambia Bureau
LUSAKA, (CAJ News) – THE Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has disputed media reports and public statements that it is secretly altering electoral rules by introducing electronic voting ahead of next year’s general elections.
It dismissed the claims circulating that a draft statutory instrument introducing biometric voting was already sitting with the Ministry of Justice and ready for approval.
Such speculation is adding to the apprehension in the Southern African country where political temperatures are rising and claims of vote rigging are already being raised, especially by some opposition parties.
Brown Kasaro, ECZ Chief Electoral Officer, said, “Furthermore, the commission wishes to restate its position, as communicated last year, that there will be no electronic voting during the 2026 general election.”
Kasoro insisted, “This position remains unchanged. Any claims suggesting otherwise are incorrect and aimed at inciting the public.”
There seems to be confusion among some members of the public over the electronic aspect of the Zambian electoral exercise.
Kasaro, in his explanation, distinguished between the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) and electronic or biometric voting.
He noted ABIS, which has been in use since 2006, is for voter registration, designed to prevent duplicate registrations and ensure the integrity of the voters register.
“It does not involve voting or or tallying of results. Therefore ABIS is not an electronic voting system,” Kasaro explained.
Tensions are high between the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) of President Hakainde Hichilema and the Patriotic Front (PF) of the late former president, Edgar Lungu.
Hichilema and UPND defeated Lungu and PF respectively in the last poll in 2021.
Hichilema’s government is under pressure amid economic problems and criticism that he had worsened autocracy in Zambia, despite pledging to eradicate it when he came to power.
ECZ has denounced claims it would rig the election, hence it denied reports of electronic voting.
“The commission calls upon all stakeholders, including political party leaders, not to drag the name of the commission into politics and desist from spreading misinformation that can erode public confidence in the electoral process,” Kasaro concluded.
– CAJ News