Voter registration off to a shaky start in Dar es Salaam

Dar es Salaam. The biometric registration of voters kicked off yesterday here amid technical hitches. A survey carried out by this paper at registration centres in the city established that some people ditched the exercise in disappointment at the slow pace of listing names due to the limited number of BVR operators.

Voters arrived at most centres as early as 5am, but the process started at around 10am. As late as 1pm, the challenges were still being felt in almost all three districts that The Citizen visited. The distribution of the machines was part of the problem, with uneven distribution of the few machines. There were claims that some densely populated areas received very few machines while the areas with lower population were given a higher number of machines.

At Tabata Jica Primary School registration centre in Ilala district, there was only one BVR machine but a large number of people had already arrived at around 10am.

Most of them complained that they had spent most of their time at the registration centre because the operators were slow. Said Mr Charles Raphael: “We have come here in large numbers but the way the process in going, there is a possibility that many people might be left out.”

He expected that there would be enough machines in Dar and was frustrated by the fact that the process had taken off at such a slow pace.

The BVR operators also reportedly appeared to have challenges using the machines and it took them up to 20 minutes to register one individual in most areas. A BVR operator at Tabata Zawadi Secondary School in Ilala, Ms Jackline Makoka, said the main challenge was that the machines collapsed now and then and it took a while for the process to begin again. “We spend a lot of time handling the machines,” she added, “but I hope all will be well and we will finish registering voters on time.”

Most of the people who spoke to this paper called for more machines in the city because it has a higher population compared to other regions. Fingerprint detection posed the main challenge.

At Mabibo Makuburi Primary School, residents asked NEC to deploy more officers and equipment in order to carry out the exercise faster. They also wanted greater efficiency in handling the people to ensure all eligible voters were registered.

Said Mr Azalia Eliezer: “Up to now, only two people have registered. We have four machines but only three are working and, as you can see, there are over 500 people here.”

There were also problems with indicating the specified area of registration and operators.

At Oysterbay in Kinondoni district, the process went well, probably because the area received many machines while the people seeking registration were few. According to the voters there, the process started very well in the area and they were happy that although the turnout has not particularly impressive, those who arrived early did not face any issues.

At Kawe ward Kwa Mtendaji Centre, the machines had not arrived by 1:30pm, but people arrived early in large numbers to register. The chief executive officer of the ward, Mr Avitus Katura, was busy communicating with officials at Kinondoni municipal, who kept assuring him that the machines would arrive anytime.