Ghosts, infants on Zimbabwe's voter's roll

Nov 18, 2009 12:22 AM | By Moses Mudzwiti

A Zimbabwean MP shocked parliament when he produced evidence that the voter's roll used in last year's elections had names of hundreds of dead people who had been registered to vote.

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Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai (left) gestures to Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe at the funeral of former defence forces commander Vitalis Zvinavashe at a shrine on the ouskirts of the capital Harare on March 14, 2009.
Photograph by: JEKESAI NJIKIZANA
Credit: AFP

MP Tongai Matutu said the anomaly showed "the extent to which the voters' roll should represent the graveyard".

"Of those 503 (dead voters), the surprising thing is that they all have a similar date of birth which is 1 January 1901," said Matutu.

Matutu is a member of Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change.

"I have the list of those people who are 107-years-old still appearing on the voters roll," said Matutu.

He said he had copies of the voter's roll used in the disputed elections, which resulted in the formation of the unity government.

"We have 144,202 [people] over the age of 90 on the voters' roll," said the fiery MP, adding that the average life expectancy of Zimbabweans was about 44 years.

"There were 115 voters who were below the age of 18 (legal voting age) with the youngest being one-year-old at the time of 2008 elections," said Matutu. ''So what it simply means is we are going to have more ghosts than registered voters.''

Zimbabwe is expected to hold fresh elections next year.

Comments

Nov 18 2009 01:11:56 AM
airbud

How long did it take you to notice that one? Or is the usual South Africa stupidity with regards to Zim elections?

For a full report try:

http://www.sokwanele.com/system/files/Rau%20Report_votersroll.pdf

"2013 VISION â€“ SEEING DOUBLE AND THE DEAD
A PRELIMINARY AUDIT OF ZIMBABWEâ€™S VOTERSâ€™ ROLL
By Derek Matyszak, Research and Advocacy Unit."

And the classic al Jazeera report last year when it was found that "Ghost" voters were registerd at rates of 22 living in a small shack, and 8000 to a field in thousand of cases in the MDC stronghold of Harare North:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9cMVpT99J0

What planet are you on South Africa?

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Nov 18 2009 01:42:06 AM
mbongwam

most of these ghosts voted for MDC exactly why president Mugabe ask for run off. whereby our puppet failed to proceed as weak candidate who can not compete with great leader.

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Nov 18 2009 02:15:48 AM
jsavo

Nov 18 2009 01:42:06 AM
mbongwam
------------------------------------------------------
Bed!

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Nov 18 2009 02:35:40 AM
mbongwam

jsavo

let me finish first my wine follow by prayer for my sins.

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Nov 18 2009 04:41:52 AM
Ngempela

So Ghosts are not supposed to vote in Zim? No one has ever tried stopping us here in SA. No one dares infact.

We will never stop supporting the BUCS even if they take away the vote from our fellow Ghosts in Zim.

We remain the Ghosts, The Buccaneers, Ezimnyama ngenkani.
UP THE BUCS!

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Nov 18 2009 07:26:32 AM
MoreFire

Nov 18 2009 01:42:06 AM
mbongwam

Mugabe MUST be removed period!

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Nov 18 2009 07:41:46 AM
mcritic

Mbogwam - dear fellow - every election since 2000 has been crooked by the crooked Zimbabwe Election Commission. The3 voters roll have been a closely guaarded secret and made available at the last moment to parties - but ZANU-PF always had the list and their agent s compiled it.

The situation is that the dead voted for Mugabe in over-whelming numbers and that is why he could manage to get 42% in the 2002 eklection and 27% in March 2008.

It took the ZEC 5 weeks to cook the results eventually announced so as to get a run off election. Why - if the MDC were the beneficiaries are thy demanding that the issue be cleared up? Why is ZANU-PF opposing the rlease of the names of new ZEC members?

Use your logic please and smell the dead corpse called ZANU-PF.