Swearing in of poll agents now concludes
Dar/Upcountry. The process to swearing in agents representing candidates ahead of the Wednesday General Election has been concluded with success and notable challenges in some areas.
The challenges include abrupt changes of swearing in authority; distance to designated areas; emergence demand for logistics budget and provision of information at the short notice.
The National Electoral Commission (NEC’s) directives required agents to be sworn-in at division headquarters instead of ward head offices, forcing political parties and candidates in Karatu and Kigoma among others to look for emergency funds to transport their agents. We had to look for accommodation and food for our agents who were sworn- in at 2am and therefore couldn’t return home,” said Kigoma regional secretary Vyohoroka Kajoro.
Chadema’s secretary for the Serengeti Zone, Mr Jackson Mnyawami, blamed NEC for providing short notice information, therefore subjecting political parties to logistics challenges, especially to transport rural agents. “In the past agents used to be sworn-in at the wards headquarters but changes have created difficulties to political parties and respective candidates,” he said. According to him, agents from five wards out of 17 haven’t been sworn-in in the Maswa East Constituency due to several errors including failure to submit introduction letters and provide two passport size photos.
In the Dodoma Urban Constituency, election supervisor Msekeni Mkufya said some agents had to correct shortcomings before swearing in. Reports from the Bukoba Urban Constituency says that 1, 600 agents out of 1, 715 registered have been sworn-in and that ACT-Wazalendo agents didn’t provide two passport size photos hence they didn’t take oaths.
The Chaumma secretary in Kilimanjaro Region, Mr Michael Mshighati, said no agents have been fielded in Vunjo, and Same West constituencies, noting that the person who coordinated the process in the Mwanga Constituency defected to CCM without handing over agents’ documents. In the Chato Constituency, election supervisor Eliud Mwaiteleke swore-in Chadema agents in 12 wards after being cleared by police after showing doubts on introduction letters. In another development, ACT-Wazalendo leader Zitto Kabwe and Chadema chairman Freeman Mbowe separately said they have discovered the presence of fake polling stations and bogus voters in the permanent voter’s registry.
“There are 13,830 bogus voters in my constituency with additional votes would be cast by students and members of security organs,” he said, noting that he was finalizing complaints to be submitted before NEC.
Mr Mbowe said millions of phantom voters and bogus polling stations have been introduced countrywide, demanding the electoral body to come clean.
Similar concerns were raised by Chadema’s parliamentary candidates for Mbeya Urban Joseph Mbilinyi; Nyamagana John Pambalu; Karatu Cecilia Pareso and Arusha Urban Godbless Lema.
(Reported by Peter Saramba, Rachael Chibwete, Alodia Dominick, Florah Temba, Elias Msuya and Louis Kolumbia)
