By Charles K Mark
National Electoral Commission (NEC) chairperson, Abednego Akok, has announced commencement of voter registration in June, this year.
Addressing the media on Tuesday, Akok stated that the national government has allocated funds for the election process.
“There are procedures which must be fulfilled, one of them, in your Boma, your Payam, your county, your state, your name must be registered-that is voter education which will begin in June this year,” he announced.
Akok emphasized that voter registration is a crucial component of the electoral process and serves as a preparatory measure for the upcoming elections.
He further mentioned that the NEC will conduct visits to various states to assess the infrastructure and human resources available for the registration process.
Mr. Akok said the commission has developed a preliminary election calendar, which will be presented and discussed by relevant stakeholders before finalization.
The Commission had submitted a gross budget of $230,000,000 to fulfil the requirements of its mandate. However, the Cabinet has approved an amount of approximately $27.2 million.
The commission revealed that it received SSP 22 billion, (approximately $14 million)
The Chairperson stated that with this allocated amount from the Council of Ministers, the commission will be able to deploy teams to prepare for voter registrations.
“We just want to keep you informed that we are going for elections,” Akok announced.
Akok also reiterated the commission’s intention to utilize the 2008 census statistics as a basis for determining the population.
Additionally, he confirmed that the commission has corresponded with the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs regarding the matter of constituencies.
“There are some discussions which the political leaders will do. In the Act there are 332 seats. I wrote to the Ministry of Justice to discuss it and pass it to the assembly. When we divided 50% geographical positions, 50% PR (Professional Representation) and 5% to be elected by the president, they don’t add up,” The Chairperson revealed.
Akok stated that the current resources available to the commission enable them to prepare for the upcoming election as per their mandate.
Meanwhile, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) recently criticized the Ministry of Finance for its approach in allocating funds to election-related institutions.
Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, the deputy chairman of the SPLM-IO party, described the allocation method as “discriminatory” and unfair.
In a statement, Pierino emphasized that out of all the election-related institutions, only two have received funding, highlighting the lack of equitable distribution of resources.