Voter registration ends despite problems

The disappearance of thousands of voter-registration cards in the Central African Republic was one of several problems marring the process of registering, an effort that ended on Sunday. Officials of the Independent Mixed Electoral Commission said the number of people to register was relatively low. Next week , the commission plans to publish the number of people registered to vote. The nine-day registration process was held during the rainy season. As many roads were impassable, the commission’s staff could not get to their registration sites. Several opened late. In the largest district for the capital, Bangui, the commission’s staff delayed the start of registration in protest against their low wages. Commission chairman Jean Wilibiro-Sacko extended registration there for two days until Tuesday, but not to other districts where registration started late. Last week, the commission reported the loss of 10,000 voter-registration cards in the city's 4th District. In fact, only 8,024 cards had disappeared, Wilibiro-Sacko said after they had been found. They had been "mistakenly dispatched to other districts, instead of the 4th", he said. The cards were coded and could not have been used in the other districts. Registration finally began in the 4th District on Friday, but had already been completed by Sunday as relatively few people showed up. While acknowledging there were organisational problems, Wilibiro-Sacko said the low registration was due to the failure of political leaders in mobilising their supporters. The electoral code allows for representatives of political parties, as well as civil society groups, to attend the electoral posts, Wilibiro-Sacko said, but few representatives bothered coming. Elections are to be held on 28 November with a referendum for a new constitution. It will be followed by combined legislative and presidential elections in January 2005, after which, the transitional period is set to end.