MILES SAMPA MISSES THE LOGIC ON GROWTH OF VOTER NUMBERS IN SOUTHERN PROVINCE
By Shalala Oliver Sepiso
Mile Miles Sampa posted on Facebook shortly: “ZAMSTATS showing top Population ⬆️ in Lusaka, CB, Eastern & Southern provinces in order. Then ECZ Voters data has defied logic showing reverse order of 80,000⬆️ in Southern to 18,000⬇️ in Lusaka from 2021 figures. People Delelarism ⬆️ 🤔”
It’s very simple logic Mr Miles Sampa. Have you forgotten that during PF times, Southern Province was denied a chance to register for NRCs when kids were being given NRCs in Eastern Province and in Luapula?
Have you forgotten that Southern Province was also not given that chance for continous voter registration like the other provinces? Remember that PF did registration in five provinces of Muchinga, Eastern, Northern, Luapula and anotherbone I can’t remember off cuff. When they switched to Western, Northwestern and Southern, the first five still continues to register. So the PF combed those provinces for all potential voters and you can’t expect many new voters there. What would have stopped them from registering before?
During that time, people of Southern Province had to move to other provinces to register and vote in the 2021 elections. People of Southern Province were just lucky that when they moved to other provinces to register, they were able to choose polling stations in their localities of Southern Province.
So now, when voter registration is free without any manipulation and tricks, which province do you think will have the highest number of new voters?
Further, to understand voter registration, factor in things like religious beliefs. Some provinces have such churches like Jehovah’s Witnesses whose members don’t vote. This doesn’t affect Southern.
Dry around Southern and you will not find empty bushes like in the north. The province is full of people and it’s population is increasing suchs to economic activity at household level, belief in cultural practices like polygamy and having values such as having more children per nuclear family.
What you should be telling us is whether the ratio of the total number of voters over the population of Southern Province is higher that other provinces. The truth is that is is still lower than many provinces because more of it’s people are still no registered. In fact the UPND should push her to get more voters registered from among their members in Southern Province.