Zanzibar completes voter verification ahead of elections

The Zanzibar Electoral Commission announced on Wednesday that verification of the voters' registers had been completed ahead of Sunday's general election. "The verification of the voter's register was completed on 22 October in the Tanzanian capital of Dar es Salaam," Masauni Yussuf Masauni, chairman of the commission, told reporters. Zanzibar merged with the mainland state of Tanganyika to form Tanzania in 1964, shortly after independence from the United Kingdom. It elects its own president who is head of government for matters internal to the island. Zanzibar also has its own House of Representatives to make laws especially for it. Voting is expected to take place on the semi-autonomous island on 30 October between 0700 and 1700. Voters will cast their ballots for the Zanzibar president, House of Representatives and local councils, and for the mainland president and parliament. The commission announced on 18 October that the voter lists were faulty, with hundreds registering to vote more than once. But authorities recently revoked a contract between the Zanzibar Electoral Commission and South African firm Waymark Infotech to audit the vote independently. Masauni said 2007 voters had been found to be bogus, while the number of eligible, registered voters was 507,225. He added that the final list of voters would be available by Thursday at the headquarters of the island's various district returning officers. "The list of people who registered more than once will immediately be forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecution to handle," he said. He said that those found to have registered multiple times would nevertheless be allowed to cast one vote on polling day. The electoral commission chairman also said the army would assist in transporting election materials to and from voting stations. He emphasised that the military would "not be operating in a political capacity", but in a strictly logistical one. "We are confident of a free and fair election, as all political parties have participated in each stage of the electoral process," he added.