Faulty printers mar registration

Faulty picture printers have marred the 2014 Tripartite Elections voter registration in Thyolo, forcing some centres to go a day without carrying out the exercise, district commissioner Bennet Nkasala said yesterday.

This comes almost five days after the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) rolled out the third phase of the voter registration in the rest of Thyolo and other Southern Region districts.

The most affected registration centres, according to the district’s MEC office, are Folopensi and Manthimba in Thyolo West Constituency, Nyodola in Thyolo Thava, Masambanjati in Thyolo South West and in Mlonda in Thyolo South.

“The biggest challenge we have is that the printers are breaking down in some areas. This, we are afraid, will slow down the whole process,” he said.

Nkasala attributed the problem to lack of well- trained personnel to handle the machines.

“It could be that some printers are not good enough, but the other major cause, according to our findings, is that those employed to operate them are not well versed in the equipment,” said Nkasala.

Nkasala said MEC experts were working round the clock to fix the printers and ensure that the affected centres resume normal operations.

The two-week registration exercise will run until September 8 but, despite the challenges, Nkasala ruled out extending the period.