CUF: Press Release - Nov 01, 2005
Election Irregularities - Press Release
MAALIM SEIF PRESIDENT, ELECTION IRREGULARITIES
PRESS RELEASE
November 1, 2005
Despite massive attempts at rigging by CCM, CUF statistics collected from Unguja and Pemba show that Maalim Seif Sharif Hamad is the winner of the Presidential Vote by a small margin.
A narrow margin is controversial, but it is only narrow because of the widespread attempts by CCM to rig the result through double voting, turning up to 70,000 people away from polling stations and forcing Janjaweed militia to vote more than once - something witnessed by all the world's media.
We have learned that ZEC intends to announce CCM as the winner. Such an outcome could only be achieved by further doctoring results during the count, this appears to be the reason why our agents were denied entry into places where the collating of results is proceeding.
In the current circumstances, CUF are calling on the Muafaka Committeee of CUF and CCM Secretaries General to meet before ZEC announces results which may not reflect the will of the people. Any such announcement would plunge the country into crisis.
We want the parties to meet to discuss these problems and to find a peaceful, political solution to the current impasse.
The problems we have noted during the elections are in detail, as follows:
1.Illegal voters. Janjaweed voted in large numbers, often without voting cards, and in more than one location. They were escorted by the Army and ferried between locations on Army vehicles. Press and election observers witnessed this happening, particularly in Stone Town in Forodhani, Kiwanda cha Madawa and Bwawani but it also too place in: Mtoni, Bububu, Mfenesini, Kwamtipura, Kikwajuni, RahaLeo, Amani, Nungwi, Muyuni, Makunduchi, Chwaka, Koani, Uzini, Chwaka, Dimani, Magogoni, Magomeni, Jang'ombe, Kwahani, Mpendae, Mwanakwerekwe and Chumbuni. In Forodhani alone, 300 were witnessed voting.
2. People denied right to vote. Many people in every constituency, especially Urban and West districts have reported being turned away from polling stations because they did not see their names on the lists despite being registered. Or, they were told that they had already voted. Large numbers of people would need to have been cut from the rolls in order to allow the Janjaweed to vote. Our MPs are currently collecting names in every constituency of people turned away. Many people were turned away even in Pemba, where being turned away may not affect the parliamentary vote, but it reduced the total number of Presidential votes.
Past elections in Zanzibar have always seen turnout of over 95%. People had to fight to be registered, many going to court. Turnout according to our figures was 83%. This is too low to be credible in the context of elections history in Zanzibar. We estimate between 15-80,000 were cut from the register.
3. Doctored Permanent Voters Register. Many of the people who voted as registered voters yesterday did so after registering more than once in many places, or did so as people who had no right to be registered. Large numbers of registered voters in possession of voting cards were turned away from polling stations. They were told either that their names were not in the register or that they had already voted CUF was not given the PVR ahead of the elections as promised - one of the conditions for accepting the results was that we were happy with the register, and that it had been verified. The register used yesterday was not the one verified by UNDP.
4. Count Doctored. CCM and ZEC appear to be further doctoring the results since the returns from the polling stations show that CUF won. There has been many problems with the collating of results, including a long delay in collating the results, discrepancies in forms, agents being refused entry into collating centres, and the diversion of results sheets to CCM offices before reaching ZEC. We fear the final result is being cooked and will differ from that demonstrated by the ZEC forms which we have collected from every polling station.
5. Agents not given results sheets. In the constituencies listed below, our agents were not given results forms. These are relatively few, 62 out of 1,617. For these poling stations, therefore, there is no historical record of the result, except what ZEC has. Our agents nevertheless recorded what was counted, and that is shown in our statistics. Each Polling Station has about 300 voters. This happened in the following places:
Kwahani - Kwahani School, Mwembe Shauri School
Dimani - Fumba, Bwefum, Kisauni
Magomeni - All 33 polling stations
Dole - - Dole School, Langoni, Legeza Mwendo, Mwenge
Mtoni -Mtoni School, Kiwanda Cha Viatu
Chaani - Masingini, Bandamaji
Matemwe - Kijini, Kigomani, Kandwi
Kitope - Kilombero, Pangeni
Uzini - Umbuji, Mchangani
Tumbatu - Mto wa Pwani, Pale
Makunduchi - Kibuteni
Nungwi - Kigunda
Jang'ombe - Kwa Alinatu
Muyuni - Jambiani, Kikadini, Muyuni School 'A'
Mfenesini - Mwakaje
SEIF SHARIF HAMAD
PROFESOR IBRAHIM LIPUMBA
Source of this article :
CUF
Date of this item added :
2005-11-01