By JAMES KUNDA –
VICE-President Inonge Wina has bemoaned the low turnout of people obtaining voters’ cards in the ongoing mobile voter registration exercise by the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ).

. Wina

Ms Wina said the number of people that obtained voters’ cards between September 14 and 27 this year, indicate a lower than expected turnout.
Based on projections of would be 18 year olds next year by the Central Statistical Office (CSO), ECZ has targeted to register 1.7 million new voters and as at September 27, only 301,103 people countrywide had obtained voters’ cards.
Ms Wina said, after presenting a ministerial statement to Parliament on the status of the exercise, that she was particularly worried with the low turnout of the female folk in the process.
She was responding to Nchanga Member of Parliament (MP) Wylbur Simuusa who had asked a follow-up question on Government’s position regarding the worrisome figures.
“There is apparent apathy from the community and this could be attributed to the reason that maybe our people are losing interest in politicians.
“But let me state that it is the duty of MPs to sensitise the people, particularly youths, on the need to possess a national registration and voters card,” she said.
Ms Wina disclosed that K124 million had so far been disbursed for the exercise which is expected to gobble up K475 million.
She said K315 million would be spent in the current exercise ending next month while K160 would be used on the exercise which will last a fortnight in March next year.
Meanwhile, the House heard that some people masquerading as Patriotic Front (PF) cadres were illegally grabbling land from innocent citizens to tarnish the image of the ruling Party.
Chief Government spokesperson Chishimba Kambwili said it had been established that these were the same people illegally demarcating land under the guise of being PF cadres.
Mr Kambwili was responding to Mafinga MP Catherine Namugala who alleged that PF cadres were behind the rampant cases of illegal land allocation in Lusaka.
Ms Namugala had asked a follow up question to the Ministry of Lands after Mazabuka Central MP Garry Nkombo queried if the Government was aware of a citizen who lost his life while battling for his land from suspected party cadres in Lusaka West.