Africa-Press – Botswana. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) Act is designed in a manner that is not open for manipulation.
Addressing Tonota District councillors on the just ended demarcation exercise on Wednesday, Secretary for IEC, Mr Jefferson Siamisang, said the commission was a vital part of the country’s democratic process, and should therefore be free from manipulation.
Mr Siamisang said while there have been some controversies in the past, such allegations of vote buying and misuse of public resources, the IEC has taken steps to ensure that the electoral process was fair and transparent.
He said this included the introduction of voter registration, creating code of conduct for candidates, and making the election results publicly available.
He noted that while the IEC was an independent body, it operated within the framework of the Constitution and the Electoral Act.
“The IEC is designed to operate independently and free from political interference and this is to ensure that the electoral process is fair and impartial,” he added.
It was against this background that, he said, Botswana, through the Commission, continued to attract a lot of benchmarking missions from other countries.
Mr Siamisang told councillors that the 2023 voter registration exercise which was scheduled to commence on October 4 to 31 has been postponed to take place throughout the month of November.
He appealed to councillors to encourage the electorates to go and participate in the exercise to vote for the government of their own choice in 2024.
“Only valid identity cards will be used in the general elections and remind electorates to put these important documents safe,” he said.
For their part, councillors thanked the IEC Secretary for a countrywide consultation with local authorities especially councillors on the outcome of the demarcation exercise.
Councillor for Jamataka, Natale and Makobo, Mr Frenzel Jeremiah, wondered why his council ward did not attract demarcation when it has more than 6 000 people.
He said council wards such as Mokubilo in the Boteti East constituency which has a population of less than 700 people have been divided into two wards.
Other councillors raised a concern about the independence of the commission but were optimistic that the commission will run the affairs of the election without fear or favour.
Tonota District Council used to have 15 Council ward but have so far been increased to 18 after incorporating Mathangwane, Borolong and Matsitama council ward.
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