Government Orders Registration Monitoring Organisations To Disband

The Ministry of Home Affairs has ordered organisations which have taken to monitoring the newly launched National Mobile Registration exercise to disband and allow officials tasked with monitoring voter registration to do their job.

Ministry spokesperson Nephas Chifuta says the mobile registration exercise is a normal operation for the government and does not call for external monitoring by other organisations. 

In particular Mr Chifuta says the Home Affairs Ministry has its own systems for appraisal and mechanisms in place to recognise which areas should be revisited to ensure identity cards are issued. 

It comes after UPND officials stormed the National Registration Office last month and criticised the government for the selective issuance of National Registration Cards.

Opposition leaders, including Hakainde Hichilema, said identity cards were being deliberately issued in Patriotic Front strongholds, while UPND districts were ignored. 

The Ministry of Health maintains that no organisation is accredited to monitor its activities and has deployed police officers to registration centres to disperse self-appointed monitors. 

Mr Chifuta has encouraged all those over the age of 16 to apply for a National Registration Card while officers are present in their area.