Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) Chief Electoral and Referenda Officer, Theo Mujoro is presenting functions, achievements and challenges of the institution to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs.
The committee is conducting consultative meetings in Tsumeb with different stakeholders falling under its mandate.
Mujoro notes that given Supreme court judgement in 2020 preventing the conduct of elections with EVMs without simultaneous use of a voter verified paper audit trail, ECN has been engaging stakeholders on the mode of voting for future elections.
The advent of Covid 19 has also affected the way elections are run. The ECN with collaboration from the Ministry of Health and Social Services and NAMPOL, have been enforcing Covid 19 health regulations such as the wearing of masks, sanitising and provision of shields to help stop the further spread of the virus.
Challenges facing ECN include lack of proper regional infrastructure and funding, cooperation from O/M/As in terms of provision of transport and the government moratorium on the appointment of civil servants in the electoral process among many others.
