MIXED FEELINGS AS OVER 300 VOTERS TURNED BACK

MANZINI - There were mixed feelings as over 300 voters were turned back at the special voting centres yesterday.

The special voting exercise was hosted in three venues; Divine Healing Ministries International Auditorium for constituencies under the Manzini Region, St Michael’s High School for the Hhohho Region and Manzini Central High School for Lubombo and Shiselweni regions. In some of the voting centres, in particular at Divine Healing Ministries International Auditorium, some voters were told that they did not qualify to vote under this special arrangement. This, they were told, was because they were not employed by the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) or government, by extension, to work in the ongoing general elections.

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When the voting process started at around 10am, some nominees realised that some of the electorate, who were casting their votes, did not fall under the category of people who were supposed to vote yesterday. In that regard, some of them approached the EBC officials and enquired as to what instrument were they using to screen the voters, to see if they qualified to vote yesterday. They also highlighted that their concern was that they had already spotted individuals casting their votes yet they did not qualify. Thereafter, the EBC officials, in partnership with members of the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS), reinforced the screening of the electorate. They did so by increasing the screening point, from one to two. At the screening points, they asked the electorate where they were employed and if it was found that they would not be working on Saturday, the day of the primary elections, they were turned back.

Some of those who were turned back included voters who work in grocery shops and supermarkets, while others said they were civil servants, but would not be working during the primary elections on Saturday. After seeing that the number of ineligible voters was high, the EBC made announcements that those who would not be working during the general elections should excuse them. Others left after the announcements, but some remained in the queues and they were eventually turned back at the screening points. When reacting to this, some of the nominees said EBC was right to turn the ineligible voters back, because if they were allowed to vote, it would have promoted corruption.

Meanwhile, some of the nominees said they believed EBC was wrong, because when making final announcements through the media, in particular Eswatini Broadcasting and Information Services (EBIS), the impression was that all those who might not be able to vote on Saturday, should cast their votes during the special voting. In that regard, they said EBC should have allowed them to vote, because even grocery and supermarket workers, among others, would be working on Saturday. A questionnaire was sent to EBC Communications Officer Mbonisi Bhembe yesterday afternoon, but at the time of compiling this report later on in the evening, he had not responded to it. Bhembe was asked to confirm the incident with the estimated number of voters, who did not qualify to vote yesterday and as a result were turned back. He was also asked to clarify the EBC’s position regarding the concern which was raised by some of the nominees regarding the voters who were turned back.

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