Young women from Gwanda and Beitbridge have welcomed the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC)`s extension of the Biometric Voters Registration Blitz as it helps make up for the days in which the electoral body was facing power outages that were affecting the charging of the BVR kits which was slowing the registration process.
The BVR exercise that started this week on the 12th of March was initially set to conclude on the 21st of March next week. Using their official Twitter Account, ZEC announced that the BVR exercise has been extended by five days, that is, from the 22nd of March to the 26th of March 2023.
There was mounting pressure from the public for ZEC to extend the BVR exercise that is seen as the final push to register new voters that will participate in the upcoming 2023 elections. Among those that were challenging ZEC to extend the Blitz were young women from Gwanda and Beitbridge that are actively mobilising their peers to register to vote.
While young women from Gwanda and Beitbridge have welcomed the extension of the BVR exercise by five days, they also challenged ZEC to continue reviewing the days of the BVR process considering the fact that problems continue being experienced in some of the availed blitz registration centres.
“If this is the final BVR exercise by the ZEC, the electoral body must continue reviewing the number of days this Blitz should take as power outages continue to be experienced across the country. In some areas, the machines are reportedly malfunctioning which is slowing down the registration process. There is need to ensure that no one is left behind,” said Sharon Ncube from Gwanda.
Another youth from Beitbridge, Sibongile Ndebele shared the same sentiments noting that, since the electoral body lamented that due to shortages of electricity that was affecting the charging of the BVR kits, the registration had been extremely affected; it was logical that ZEC had extended the Blitz by five days.
Young women said for a longtime, women participation in electoral processes has been limited to some social, traditional and political constraints which was the reason they were determined to mobilise many young women to register to vote so they can make their voices heard in the upcoming 2023 elections.
They challenged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to solve the problems they are currently facing to ensure that the peers they mobilise do not fail to register due to machine failures or electrical challenges.
Young women said if ZEC manages to register more people in this final BVR exercise, it will improve the integrity of the electoral body and improve the confidence of the electorate.
They added that it was commendable that ZEC was communicating with the public with regards to the ongoing Blitz as it shows commitment, transparency and accountability.
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