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Where are the voters? - Electorial Office of Jamaica (EOJ) trying to locate 300,000 electors
published: Thursday | February 2, 2006 Tyrone Reid, Staff Reporter
THE ELECTORAL Office of Jamaica (EOJ) is experiencing difficulties in locating approximately 300,000 people on the voters' list for re-verification. Professor Errol Miller, chairman of the Electoral Advisory Committee (EAC), made the disclosure yesterday at a press briefing at the committee's headquarters at 34 Old Hope Road, St. Andrew. The disclosure confirmed concerns raised by the Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) earlier this year. However, Tom Tavares-Finson, JLP representative on the EAC, said he was satisfied with the process being undertaken to get the names on the May 31 voters' list. "As it stands now ... we are satisfied that steps are being taken to ensure that the persons who have not been found so far are being located," Mr. Tavares-Finson told The Gleaner yesterday. Professor Miller also revealed that the political parties would get an opportunity to peruse the list and locate missing voters between March 15 and April 9. In the interim, Danville Walker, director of elections, warned that persons who are not re-verified by May 2006 would not be on the voters' list due to be published at the end of May. Those individuals would have to be registered for the voters' list due to be published in November 2006. However, Professor Miller said the EAC would be "patient, persistent and thorough" in its bid to re-verify every voter. He revealed that election officials are still making efforts to locate the voters. Professor Miller said the residence re-verification process is being carried out in three phases. The first phase involves visits to every house on the voters' list, which is comprised of 1,413,794 people. The re-verification process is now in its second phase, which was to begin yesterday and culminate on February 26. However, the cut off date is February 24. During this period, those who have not been re-verified are being invited to visit or call the fixed centres in their constituencies. The third stage, which is due to commence on March 1, will include scheduled visits to electors who presented documented evidence of residence and unscheduled visits to other electors who contacted the EOJ. Mr. Walker believes this new approach would be more cost effective and efficient.?It will cost significantly less than if we were to do a house-to house-exercise." |
