TACKLING VOTER APATHY

THE voter apathy that characterised the Lusaka mayoral elections yesterday must be a source of concern to the nation, and more so, to political parties. People must be interested in voting because this is the surest way of deciding on who gets to occupy elective public offices. For one thing, policy decisions are made by those in elective offices and that is why it is crucial for all citizens who qualify to vote. For political parties, it is imperative to know how many of their members actually vote and not merely showing up for rallies and giving a false sense of popularity. It is votes that count. It is also important that people elected to public office have a clear mandate through the participation of a large part of the population. Yesterday’s voter turnout in the Lusaka mayoral by-election leaves much to be desired. By mid-day, in some polling stations with more than 1, 000 registered voters, only a 100 had voted. This is pathetic and a warning to those in power and those who aspire to rule, that something has gone astray. What has led to reduced voter turnout in elections to such low levels that even President Edgar Lungu was disappointed? The President had declared Thursday, July 26, 2018 as a public holiday to enable registered voters cast their votes without hindrance of work. However, even this did little to improve voter turnout. One wonders what has happened to reduce the voter turnout. Have we had too many elections or are people just not interested in voting and if so, why? In a space of nine years, the country has been subjected to four presidential elections; 2008 and 2015 were both prompted by vacancies arising from the deaths of the incumbents, Levy Mwanawasa and Michael Sata, respectively. This was unavoidable. And then the country had the general elections of 2011 and 2016. In between, there have been various parliamentary and local government by-elections arising from natural causes, resignations and expulsions. While natural causes such as death cannot be avoided, other causes can be stemmed through constitutional amendments. The office of mayor for instance, could easily be filled if a vacancy arose through a vote by councillors or a provision that the deputy takes over. This would be less costly and most appropriate because the deputy would be able to carry on with programmes initiated by the council. Yesterday’s low turnout of voters attests to why this could be a better option. As President Lungu observed, voting is the only way that people can exercise their democratic rights and help put the right people into office. Unfortunately, many registered voters chose to stay home and not exercise their democratic right to choose who would preside over affairs of the Lusaka City Council (LCC). This is sad because it is important for all eligible and registered voters to exercise their rights and help shape the destiny of the city and the nation. Many people are fond of complaining about civic leaders but are themselves not ready to do their part by electing individuals that they feel are capable of delivering development. It is pointless to sit at home or in the office without voting while expecting challenges to be solved. There is no magic wand to effect change. Change must start with citizens taking civic duty seriously. If everyone shirks their responsibility, then we should all be held responsible if we do not get the development that we deserve and expect. A proactive citizen must be interested in voting to ensure that their preferred candidates garner enough votes to carry the day. It is pointless to complain about those leading us if we fail to do our civic duty of voting.