According to Chapter 4 of the new Constitution prisoners serving less than six months have the right to vote. They were denied their vote during the constitutional referendum, as the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission said it had limited resources and time.
Justice and Legal Affairs Deputy Minister Obert Gutu said his ministry had ensured that all the modalities for prisoners were in place to ensure that they cast their vote in the forthcoming plebiscite. “The onus is on ZEC to ensure that inmates are registered because that is not our mandate to implement the election processes. If ZEC wants us to assist them in terms of access to prisons, we are more than ready to work with them and facilitate the necessary arrangements. What we cannot do is to run the show for them,” he said.
The CEO of the Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation of the Offenders, Edison Chihota, said the right to vote for inmates was shrouded in mystery because ZEC was not open about current efforts to ensure their registration.
Efforts to engage ZEC had proved futile and the organisation was not forthcoming in availing details on progress made so far in addressing this challenge, he added.
Efforts to get a comment from ZEC were futile as the Chairperson, Justice Rita Makarau was said to be very busy with endless meetings. Her deputy, Joyce Kazembe, refused to comment.
Post published in: News