08 Nov 2017

Attorney General’s Chambers is drafting the Electoral (Amendment) Bill for the inclusion of the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT).

Delivering the State of the Nation Address on November 6, President Lt Gen. Dr Seretse Khama Ian Khama said the move follows a call by Batswana for the inclusion of the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail for the sake of transparency and integrity of the electoral process.

President Khama said with the coming into force of the Electoral Amendment Act, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) mounted an extensive sensitisation campaign of key stakeholders on the new law, including all registered political parties and all councils.

He said community leaders and the general public in all the 57 constituencies had also been addressed.

The President said the Commission also reviewed the number and locations of polling stations following consultations with key stakeholders and local authorities, adding that this resulted in a reduction of local and external polling stations.

He said IEC ws further working with government on the development of an interface between the Election Management System and Land Information System in preparation for the voter registration exercise.

He said the system would curb instances of illegal voter registration and voter trafficking. ENDS