The United Party for National Development have busted one of the Patriotic Front rigging mechanisms with some ballot papers and voters cards all being recovered along the way.
The night patrols team in the early hours of Tuesday gave a chase to an unregistered Nissan Double Cab loaded by PF Officials.
The officials dropped 14 voters cards in the process of jumping off the vehicle.
UPND officials uncovered the scheme after a tip off from locals who were visited at their homes by PF officials buying voters cards in the area.
Sources say the UPND team trailed the vehicle and only managed to find them in Kanwanjiba area in Chilo Ward of Katuba Constituency.
“The information reached the opposition camp is that there are vehicles going round distributing foodstuffs in exchange for voters cards,” the source said.
In the morning trail, a fierce scuffle ensued last evening between Electoral Commission of Zambia officers and UPND officials at Kanwanjiba Basic School after it discovered the officers opened ballot boxes in the absence of political party agents when there was assurance during the earlier briefing that all stakeholders would be invited at the point of distribution of election materials to polling stations.
“But a tip off alerted UPND Dundu Member of Parliament Hon Edger Singombe manning Chilo Ward who rushed to Kanwanjiba Basic where they found ECZ officers busy with materials and some ballot papers were found on the desk.
“When confronted, the officers said it is how they found them loosely in the box. At this point, UPND cadres could not listen to their leaders as they started kicking and roughing up the officers. The UPND has since lodged a complaint on the same,” the source said.
In Kabile Ward, six PF women from Lusaka have been whipped after they were found standing on the road at Kalala Basic polling Station stopping people going to cast their vote giving them K20 notes.
“The women pleaded for leniency claiming they were just told to be doing that as they did not know it was an offence.
UPND has engaged vigorous patrols making sure voters are not induced by any means. The party is using today’s election as a test of its revised Mapatizya Election Management Formula ahead of 2016 general election.
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