Maravi

Yezi urges ECZ to strengthen electoral regime

Yezi urges ECZ to strengthen electoral regime
By Agness Changala
Mon 25 Jan. 2010, 04:01 CAT

DEVELOPMENT consultant Abdon Yezi has urged the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to strengthen the weak electoral regime because it is not responsive to the dictates of democratic principles and practices.

In an interview, Yezi said Zambia needed to seriously address the factors that had eroded the electoral system and process.

“The very fact that you have an electoral system that does not inspire confidence erodes legitimacy of the political office holders that arise from the elections. Currently, resolution of electoral conflicts take long and in most cases run the full length of the life of Parliament itself,” Yezi said.

“This is a blatant denial of justice, and the courts of law have been accused as being party to dragging such cases. All this is as a result of a weak electoral regime which is not responsive to the dictates of democratic principles and practices, even around the region.”

Yezi observed that the largest conflicts that Zambia had suffered in the recent years had been as a result of the electoral system and process.

He said there was need to build confidence in the outcome of the electoral process.
“Apart from the 1991 elections, all subsequent elections have remained controversial and contested. Zambian voters are rarely swayed by the levels of campaigns conducted by each political party,” Yezi said. “If anything civic education conducted in this country has been very high but people have chosen to be indifferent.”

Yezi said there was no correlation to citizens' participation in democratic events like elections and the improvement in their welfare.

“If anything, the highest level of apathy and cynicism is on the educated and increasingly youthful population. On the contrary, issues of limiting campaign times are inconsequential to the process because by the time elections are being held, there is very little percentage if any, of undecided voters,” he said.

Yezi welcomed the continuous voter registration exercise, saying it would increase the number of Zambians taking part in the elections as voters.

He said the voting population had continuously been increasing but the structure of the system had continued to deny most of the enthusiastic voters from exercising their democratic right, the right to vote.

“Unfortunately, for an important process like this one it is sad that resources allocated to the process continue to remain meagre,” he said.

Yezi said political parties, especially the opposition, in Zambia were the most orphaned and suffered the challenges of survival.

“In the absence of political party financing, their role of being effective oversight institutions or indeed providing alternative policies is inconceivable,” said Yezi.

Labels: ABDON YEZI, ECZ, ELECTIONS

posted by MrK @ 1:41 AM