UPND’s Batuke Imenda and Gary Nkombo protest over ECZ ballot printing witness red tape
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UPND Alliance 2021 Presidential aspirant Hakainde Hichilema with UPND Secretary General Batuke Imenda
By Pamela Mulenga and Derrick Sinjela
United Party for National Development (UPND) Secretary General Batuke Imenda and Chairperson for Elections Gary Nkombo are still struggling to break through a rigorous United Arab Emirates (UAE) visa approval to witness printing of ballot papers in Dubai.
In a Monday Commencement of Printing of the 2021 General Election Ballot Papers Media Statement, ECZ Corporate Affairs Manager Patricia Luhanga in confirming commencement of printing of ballot papers, said the process will end on Friday 30th July, 2021.
Ms. Luhanga said the Electoral Body Commission has accredited the 19 applicants but only the PF have managed to send a representative. Those from UPND, Peoples Alliance for Change (PAC) and Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Candidate for Lumenzi Constifuency are expected to join the team.
But Mr. Imenda and Mr. Nkombo regretted that out of 19 travel applications approved by the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ), two applicants Richard Njelomba, a UPND representative and Dilan Kasonde, head of the ECZ Information Technology (IT) department at ECZ, had their visa applications denied, ostensibly on account that the UAE is currently grappling with a serious Coronavirus (covid 19) pandemic.
Briefing local media in Lusaka on Monday 5th July, 2021, a worried Imenda regretted that a UPND and ECZ official were left of of a team that has since arrived in Dubai to witness printing of ballot papers of ahead of the Thursday 12th August, 2021 General Elections.
“Our representative here, Mr. Richard Njelomba had his visa application and that of Dilan Kasonde, head of the IT at ECZ denied. When we inquired from ECZ, official at the electoral body confirmed that the two visas were not approved. An ECZ staff communicated to us that visas for Mr. Njelombe and Mr. Kasonde had not approved by the Indian Government due to covid-19, more so as Zambia is blacklisted,” Imenda cried foul, as in the same breathe, applications for 17 other Zambians had received consent.
A determined Imenda said UPND will address the matter as an emergency, as he urged the ECZ to plead with the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Lusaka to engage the Indian peers in New Delhi on a goverment to goverment dialogue.
Despite the electoral body assuring UPND of a willingness to intervebe on the matter at had little progress had been made by Press Time on Monday 5th July 2021.
“This electoral ordeal is unfair, undemocratic amidst an alleged alledged scheme by Patriotic Front ,(PF) schemers to rig the outcome, by ensuring UPND monitors are denied a chance to observe the printing of ballot papers,” Imenda protested.
Meanwhile, having ears to the ground, Mr. Nkombo equally saw the visa act as a scheme by PF in concert with the ECZ, as information delivered by a source indicated that Mr. Kasonde’s travel documents have since been regularised.
Nkombo, currently campaigning to defend his Mazabuka seat in the Southern Province says as a Plan B action as the process of printing ballot papers at mayoral level in Dubai is going till July 30th 2021, a UPND representative of high standing in London, United Kingdom, is on standby and will travel should the bureaucracy in India, UAE and at the ECZ remain unresolved.
“When we saw that the situation was getting worse, we shall fly in an individual of a high standing to represent us while the matter is settled out,” noted Nkombo.
Nkombo is demanding an explaination from the UAE Goverment as to why it nullified only two applicants out of a total 19 applications, pointing out that had the covid 19 situation been worrying, 17 applications were to be denied by allowing only two travellers to proceed to Dubai through New Dehli.
“I strongly feels that the PF and the electoral body deliberately plotted to leave out a UPND and ECZ official. I urge UPND Alliance members to remain calm as on a daily basis, we are determined to reach Dubai ahead of printing of presidential ballots. We are working 24 hours to make sure that Mr Njelomba documents are regularised before printing Presidential ballot papers,” Nkombo calmed the UPND Alliance members.
