The Sunday News
Munyaradzi Musiiwa/ Sukoluhle Ndlovu
HOME Affairs Minister Dr Ignatius Chombo has ordered the Registrar General’s office to start issuing National Identity cards and birth certificates for free and to stop frustrating rural people seeking the aforementioned particulars to enable a flawless Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) process.
Speaking during a commissariat workshop on voter education and registration campaign in Gweru yesterday, Dr Chombo said during the BVR period people should get National Identity Cards and birth certificates for free.
The RG’s office was charging $5 for a new ID and $10 for a lost one, a process which made it difficult for rural people and the underprivileged to register to vote during the ongoing mobile registration process.
In Midlands such cases were rampant in Mberengwa, Chirumhanzu, Gokwe and Shurugwi. Dr Chombo said personnel from RG’s office should also desist from harassing and frustrating people particularly in rural areas during the registration process.
“There are reports that some of the officials from the RG’s office deployed to rural districts have been frustrating people who would have come to get their IDs and birth certificates. This should not happen. We have heard that some make them pay so that they get these particulars. These particulars are for free during the BVR period. We want the process to be flawless and we do not want people to be turned away,” he said.
Dr Chombo also encouraged Zanu party members to take advantage of the ongoing Biometric Voter’s Registration (BVR) to ensure a landslide victory for the revolutionary party come 2018. The Zanu-PF Secretary for Administration also warned party members against abusing the revolutionary party paraphernalia and new electronic cards to intimidate police at roadblocks in order to evade arrest.
He said all members of the party should have the new electronic membership cards by the end of the month as the revolutionary party oils its machinery for the 2018 harmonised elections. The electronic membership card, which contains personal details including a mugshot and electronic chips, will also be linked to the holders’ bank accounts to enable automated subscriptions.
People’s Own Savings Bank (POSB) will be monitoring and authorising all the financial transactions performed using the “debit” cards which also bear account numbers on them.
“We have introduced new membership cards. We are urging all members in this province to acquire them by end of this month. However, do not abuse them because some of the party members have a tendency of producing them at roadblocks to intimidate police so that they will not be stopped or searched. At one point I had a report that there were members of the party from Chitungwiza who were using them to evade paying at tollgates,” he said.
Zanu-PF Midlands Province is targeting to register one million members before the 2018 harmonised elections.
