A PROMINENT Community leader Is urging the Electoral Commission to re-think its decision on voter registration, saying the current arrangement is a deliberate move to deny thousands of people their rights to vote.
“The Commission knows very well many intending voters are not in a position to afford their fares in order to register to vote in the Constituencies of their choice. Intending candidates also face the affordability question,” William Gua told Solomon Star yesterday.
Voter registration starts on Monday 4th September and ends on 29th September, according to a special gazette signed by the acting Chair of the Commission, Taeasi Sanga.
Intending voters must travel to the Constituencies of their choice to register if they were to vote in the upcoming election. Subject to the ruling by Chief Justice Sir Albert Palmer to be handed down early next week, Solomon Islands could go to the poll later this year.
Mr. Gua, told Solomon Star the Electoral Commission must rethink its decision on this important matter and establish voting booths in Honiara for each of the 50 Constituencies.
“The current arrangement is a deliberate move by the Government to deny thousands of new voters their democratic rights to take part in the election. It is yet another black dot on the record of a government whose own interests are more important than those of the people they represent,” Mr. Gua said.
The Electoral Commission maintains that its decision to move voter registration to Constituencies was based on problems encountered in 2019 when polling booths for each of the 50 Constituencies were opened in Honiara.
“There was a lot of dishonesty in voting,” one commissioner said this week.
But Mr. Gua said this is the “lamest of excuses” he had heard in a long time.
“The Electoral Commission should use the issues they claimed to have encountered as a learning curve for the administration of elections here. To come up with the lamest of excuses as they have is non-sensical and an insult on the intelligence of the people of Solomon Islands,” Mr. Gua said.
“I am concerned that a large group of people would miss out in the voting as a result of the deliberate decision by government to deny them their democratic rights to vote.
“For example, you have thousands of students who have reached the voting age of 18 years. You have Solomon Islands nationals in Australia and New Zealand who will miss out and the list goes on.
“The decision to move voter registration to the Constituency is a total contradiction of the Government’s motto, which says “No one should be left behind.”
Mr. Gua said the government is fully aware thousands will not afford the cost of traveling home to register as voters.
“Sadly, it appears the Electoral Commission has compromised its independence by succumbing to pressure by government to make it hard for intending voters and candidate to participate in the election and thereby enjoy justice and fairness that democracy represents.
“And for the Electoral Commission to tell us these excuses four years after the last election shows they have not learned a thing nor are they interested in moving the country forward from the rorts the country has endured over the years,” Mr. Gua said.
By Alfred Sasako
