TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT …..3

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION …4-5
• ABOUT THE ECF-SADC
• GENERAL TERMS OF REFERENCE
• ABOUT THE MISSION

CHAPTER TWO
THE HISTORICAL & POLITICAL BACKGROUND OF ZAMBIA ELECTIONS 6-7

CHAPTER THREE
THE CONSTITUTION AND ELECTORAL LEGAL FRAMEWORK……………8-9
• THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION
• THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM

CHAPTER FOUR
THE MEDIA AND ELECTIONS …………………10-11

CHAPTER FIVE

PRE-ELECTION PHASE ……………………12-14

• DELIMITATION OF CONSTITUENCIES
• VOTER EDUCATION
• VOTER REGISTRATION
• ELECTORAL CAMPAIGNS
• RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING
• ACCREDITATION
• STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

1
CHAPTER SIX
POLLING DAY ………………….15-16
• OPENING OF POLL
• VOTING PROCESS
• CLOSING OF POLL
• COUNTING OF VOTES
• ANNOUNCEMENT OF RESULTS

CHAPTER SEVEN
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ……………………………16

APPENDICES………………………………………………………………………….17-24
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
LIST OF DELEGATES
DEPLOYMENT PLAN

2
 Tel (+267) 3180012
C/O IEC – Botswana (+267) 3612400
7th Floor- Block 8 + Fax (+267) 3900581
Government Enclave
(+267) 3905205
P/Bag 00284 URL- www.sadc-ecf.org
Gaborone, Botswana

Ref: ECF 30th November 2008

The Chairperson,
Electoral Commission of Zambia,
Lusaka
Zambia

Hon Justice Mumba,

As) is the tradition, the Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries (ECF-SADC)
has honoured the invitation to observe the Presidential Election in Zambia held on the 30th
October 2008.

The Observer Mission hereby forwards its Report to the host Commission, the Electoral
Commission of Zambia. The Mission believes that this Report will assist your Commission
in addressing areas requiring improvement and that other sister Commissions in the SADC
region will also learn something worthwhile about the Zambia electoral process.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

…………………………………
(Retired Justice L.M. Makame)
Mission Leader
ECF-SADC Observer Mission to Zambia Presidential Election, October 2008

cc. ECF President

ECF Chairperson
All SADC Electoral Commissions

Forum Presidency: Rev A. Malumalu - President (DRC), Justice A. Msosa -Vice President (Malawi)
EXCO: Chairperson: Justice I. Mambilima (Zambia), - Vice Chairperson: Chief S.G Dlamini (Swaziland), Justice A.C P C. de
Sousa ( Angola)Justice S. Gaongalelwe (Botswana) Mr A Rahman (Mauritius) M.K. Mwinyichande ( Zanzibar) Justice G. Chiweshe
( Zimbabwe)

3
CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

ABOUT THE ECF-SADC

The Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries (ECF-SADC) was launched in Cape
Town in July 1998 and is governed by a Constitution which mandates it to perform the
following:

• Strengthen co-operation amongst Electoral Commissions in the Southern African

Development Community,

• Promote conditions conducive to free, fair and transparent elections in countries in

the Southern African Development Community, and

• Promote democracy as a political system of responsible and accountable government

through the electoral process.

The Principles of Electoral Management, Monitoring and Observation (PEMMO) are the
major observation tool used by ECF missions. PEMMO is a joint project between ECF and
Electoral Institute of Southern Africa (EISA). These guidelines continue to be resourceful
to ECF missions whenever observers are deployed to SADC countries. Through election
observation, the Electoral Commissions members are able to identify potential areas of
support for one another.

GENERAL TERMS OF REFERENCE

The general terms of reference for the Mission were to observe the pre-election
environment, the conditions in which the election would take place, the conduct of election
and whether the results reflect the participation of the people and the conditions observed in
the electoral process, evaluate and assess these processes, reflect on them and make
recommendations that will contribute to the improvement of the electoral process in
Zambia.

ABOUT THE MISSION

The Electoral Commissions Forum (ECF) of the Southern African Development

Community (SADC) countries was invited by the Electoral Commission of Zambia through
a letter dated 22nd September 2008 to observe the 2008 Presidential Election scheduled for
the 30th October 2008. In response to this invitation, the ECF duly deployed a 21 member
Observer Mission.

The Electoral Commissions represented in the ECF-SADC Observer Mission were from the
following countries:

4
 • Angola
• the Democratic Republic of Congo,
• Lesotho
• Mozambique
• Swaziland
• Tanzania and
• Zimbabwe.

The first delegates arrived in Lusaka on the 24th October 2008. Hon. Retired Justice Lewis
M. Makame, Chairperson of the National Electoral Commission of Tanzania was elected to
lead the Mission.

The Mission was briefed by the ECZ on the level of its preparedness for the election and
was satisfied, because it was able to gather adequate information on key issues that are
central to the conduct of the forthcoming election.

The Mission also consulted with a number of stakeholders through organising a seminar at
which some of them were invited. The following was gathered;

• The level of impartiality of the media in the coverage of the election;

• The historical and political background of Zambia elections and the current
electoral system, and
• Perspectives of Civil Society and Non-governmental Organisations on the
forthcoming election.

Due to time constraints, the Mission was unable to interact with political parties.

DEPLOYMENT
The Mission covered seven constituencies namely; Chawama, Kabwata, Kanyama, Mandevu,
Lusaka Central, Munali and Materu. All the teams managed to make pre-polling visits to
their assigned constituencies. These places are all within the urban area of Lusaka. The
Mission was not able to cover other areas of Zambia.

OBSERVATIONS
The Mission observed the following;
• The environment during the pre-poll period was generally quiet and peaceful
• The ECZ put all necessary logistics together to facilitate the efficient holding of the
election
• The contesting political parties campaigned freely
• There were no reported incidents of political violence or intimidation of voters
• Candidates had access to both print and electronic media
• Accreditation procedures were conducted smoothly
• There were unrestricted numbers of both local and international observers

5
Other observations are reflected in the preliminary statement attached to this Report.

Chapter TWO

HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL BACKGROUND OF ZAMBIA

ELECTIONS

Zambia fought for its independence over a long period of time. In 1961 the British Secretary
of State of colonies proposed a constitution for Zambia, which would guarantee African
control. The Constitution was amended to give the Africans a small majority in parliament.
In 1962 elections were held and ANC and UNIP formed a coalition in a transitional
government while the colony prepared for independence.

The political landscape of Zambia unfolded as shown in the following developments:

• 1962: A two-stage election held in October and December resulted in an African

majority in the legislative council and an uneasy coalition between the two African
nationalist parties.
• 1963: Federation of Zambia (then Northern Rhodesia), was dissolved and Northern
Rhodesia became the Republic of Zambia
• 1964: Kenneth David Kaunda, leader of the Zambia African National Congress,
won elections as Prime Minister and later became the first President of Zambia.
• 1968: post independence elections as a multi-party state and later Dr. Kenneth
Kaunda introduced a one party state after a major amendment of constitution which
was approved on 13 December 1972.
• 1973- 1988: General elections were conducted after adoption of a Single-Party
Political System, merging all Political Parties to UNIP as the only political party. The
General Election was then conducted under one party system
• 1990: Zambia reverted to the Multi – Party Political System after Parliament repealed
article 4 of the Republican Constitution that cancelled political parties.
• 1991: The re-introduction of Multi-Party politics caused the emergence of the
Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) as a political party. Multi-Party
elections were held on 31 December 1991 in which two parties MMD and UNIP
contested. MMD won that Election and Mr. Frederic Chiluba became the second
Republican President of Zambia.
Post 1991: Emergence of six political parties namely Zambia Democratic Congress,
National Party, Movement for Democratic Process, Agenda for Zambia, Liberal
Progressive party, Grassroots Welfare Party, National Democratic Party, Labour
Party, Independent Democratic Party and Socialist Revolutionary Party.
• 1996: Presidential and General Election contested by MMD, Zambia Democratic
Congress, National Party, Movement for Democratic Process, Agenda for Zambia in
which MMD won. Other political parties boycotted the election.
• 2001: Close to Presidential Election and General Election of 2001 some new parties
were born which included Heritage Party, Forum for Democracy, Democracy and

6
 Development, Zambia Republican Party, Patriotic Front and United Party for
National Development
• 2006: Tripartite election held, i.e. Presidential, General and Local Government
elections held at the same time. Some Opposition parties formed electoral alliances
supposedly for enhanced impact. Alliances included; Heritage Party and Agenda for
Change; ZRP, RP and Party for Unity; Patriotic Front and United Liberal Party;
Democracy and Development formed alliance with NDF; and the United
Democratic Alliance embraced UPND, UNIP and FDD. Levy Mwanawasa of
MMD was elected the third President of Zambia.

• 2008: 5th multi- party elections held following the untimely death of President Levy
Mwanawasa. According to the law the Electoral Commission of Zambia has to
conduct a Presidential election within 90 days following the death of President as
stipulated by the Constitution.

7
 CHAPTER THREE

THE CONSTITUTION AND ELECTORAL LEGAL FRAMEWORK

THE CONSTITUTION OF ZAMBIA AND THE ELECTORAL ACT

The Constitution of the Republic of Zambia, 1991 as amended by Act No. 18 of 1996 and the Electoral
Act, No. 12 of 2006 form the basis of the electoral framework of Zambia.

Article 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Zambia provides that Zambia is a unitary, indivisible,
multi-party and democratic sovereign State and all power resides in the people who shall
exercise their sovereignty through the democratic institutions of the State in accordance with
the Constitution.

According to Article 33 and 35 of The Constitution, the head of State is the President of
Zambia who shall hold the office for a period of five years.

An election to the office of President shall be held whenever the National Assembly is
dissolved or if the office of the President becomes vacant by reason of death or resignation
or by reason of ceasing to hold office. If a vacancy occurs an election to the office of
President shall be held within ninety days from the date of the office becoming vacant.

All persons registered in Zambia as voters for the purposes of elections to the National
Assembly shall be entitled to vote in the Presidential Election. Qualifications for registration
are provided under Article 75 of the Constitution that a person must be a citizen of Zambia
and has attained the age of eighteen years.

The election of the President shall be direct by universal adult suffrage and by secret ballot
and shall be conducted in accordance with the Constitution and the Electoral Act.

The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ)

The Electoral Commission of Zambia is established as an autonomous body under Article

76 of the Republic of Zambia Constitution and the Electoral Commission Act of 1996.
Together with other relevant statutory instruments, these laws set out the ECZ’s mandate to
provide for the conditions and organization for the conduct elections.
According to Article 76 (1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Zambia, Section 4 of the
Referendum Act,1967 and Section 3 of the Local Government Act, 1991 the Electoral
Commission of Zambia is vested with the following functions;
(1) to supervise voter registration,
(2) to conduct Presidential and Parliamentary Elections,
(3) to delimit Constituencies,
(4) to supervise referenda,
(5) to conduct and supervise the Local Government Elections.
According to Section 4 (2), (3) and 5 (3) of the Electoral Commission Act of 1996, the
Zambia Electoral Commission consists of a Chairperson and not more than four other
Commissioners appointed by the President of the Republic of Zambia, subject to ratification
8
by the National Assembly. The Commissioners may be removed by the President if they are
declared insane or bankrupt.

The Commissioners are appointed for a term of office not exceeding seven years. Their
terms may be renewed, but the renewals require the ratification of the National Assembly.

Currently the Electoral Commission of Zambia has the following members;

(1) Hon. Justice Florence N. Mumba (Chairperson)
(2) Hon. Joseph Jalasi (Commissioner)
(3) Hon. Grace Mulapesi (Commissioner)

The Constitution of the Republic of Zambia provides that the Electoral Commission shall
not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority in the exercise of
its functions.

The Electoral System of Zambia

The President of Zambia is elected for a five year period in a single National Constituency
under the “First-Past-The-Post” Electoral System. “The-First-Past-The-Post” System was
questioned when the late president Mwanawasa won the 2001 election with only 29% of the
popular vote. The Constitution review Commission (CRC), established by the President,
considered wide range reform of the Constitution. The report of the Electoral Reform
Technical Committee (ERTC) recommended that the President be elected with an absolute
majority of 50% plus one vote of the vote cast. However the Government left the electoral
reform for future consideration by the new Parliament and Government. The Electoral Act
of 2006 thus retained the “First-Past-The-Post” Electoral System.

9
 CHAPTER FOUR
THE MEDIA AND ELECTIONS

The Electoral Code of Conduct for Zambia provides the framework guiding the media’s
conduct during an election period. It requires all the media to cover all aspiring candidates in
a fair and balanced manner and goes on to stipulate the airtime each political party may buy
in a given week, in a given language. The Code cautions media heads not to interfere in the
operations of their reporters. The ECF-SADC Mission is of the view that on the face of it,
the Code of Conduct was generally observed by all the media during the election period.

MEDIA COVERAGE

It was observed that during the 2008 Presidential election(s), both the public and private
media covered the elections through advertisements, interviews, and live-discussions on
television and newspaper reports. The public media (those media in which Government has a stake)
tended to cover the programmes and express views that were in favour of the government,
the ruling party and its candidate. Where the opposition was covered, some of the articles
tended to be negative i.e. targeting the opposition candidate(s). Equally so, the private media
(those media that are privately owned) tended to cover the programmes and express views in
sympathy with the Opposition but mainly only one of the candidates. This trend was noted
of all the media houses.

ADVERTISEMENTS

The media accepted advertisements from all contesting parties. This gave the electorate an
informed choice, at least for that electorate in the urban and peri-urban areas where there is
newspaper, radio and television coverage. The Mission was not able to determine on its own
the extent of media coverage outside Lusaka. All the parties flighted advertisements of their
programmes, rallies etc. The Mission was informed that community radio stations whilst
available, faced challenges such as limited resources and as a result their capacity to inform
the public especially in the rural areas was to a large extent compromised.

It was noted that the ECZ flighted informative advertisements in all the media and on the
eve of the election issued out a flyer in all the newspapers outlining the conduct of the
elections titled, “MONITORING OF VOTING, THE COUNT AND RESULTS
TOTALING FOR THE 2008 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION TO BE HELD ON
THURSDAY 30th OCTOBER 2008”. As referred to above, the urban electorate would have
benefited from this type of advertisement but the rural areas probably did not benefit as
much because of distances to be covered and the time lag in distribution.

10
AREAS OF CONCERN RAISED BY MEDIA STAKEHOLDERS

The Mission noted the following concerns as brought up by Media stakeholders during a
consultative seminar:
• That the ECZ organized workshops without informing some media bodies.
They recommended that the ECZ should periodically consult all electoral
stakeholders.
• That the Media Complaints Commission was not yet formed although the
law made provision for such a body. This meant that stakeholders who may
have been affected by an infringement of the Electoral Code of Conduct by
the media could not have recourse to any arbiter. It was recommended that
the ECZ takes steps to institute the Media Complaints Commission.
• That the government of Zambia was a major shareholder in some
newspapers, radio and television. As such some stakeholders felt that these
papers favoured the ruling party and its candidate. Since the privately owned
media also favoured the opposition, it was felt that this probably balanced
the equation. What was of concern was that some media were said to be
alarmist. This reinforces the need for the Media Complaints Commission to
be instituted.

11
 Chapter FIVE
PRE- ELECTION PHASE

DELIMITATION OF CONSTITUENCIES

During its consultative meeting with ECZ, the Mission learnt that the constituency boundary
delimitation was not conducted as it was not immediately legally necessary. The last
delimitation was done in 2005 and only figures from Central bureau of statistics are the
(only) ones used for delimitation, thus has been no census since then. Zambia comprises of
9 provinces, 72 districts and 150 constituencies.

VOTER EDUCATION

Through interaction with the ECZ and other electoral stakeholders, the Mission was
informed that the Civil Society groups in Zambia played a vital role throughout the election.
They were active in voter awareness and in voter education. The mission also noted that the
ECZ had organized radio and television programmes to educate the public on election and
polling procedures.

The Mission was briefed by Civil Society umbrella organization that there were not working
very closely with ECZ. However, the level of voter awareness on the ground did indicate
that people were ready and understood the process. In addition, the political rallies showed
the Mission a great enthusiasm of the election from the general public.

VOTER REGISTRATION

The 2006 voter registration was used in the election. The ECZ had only three months to
prepare for the election and as such did not have enough time and resources to register new
people.

The mission was informed that 3,944,135 voters registered in 2005 and more females were
registered. Only replacement of voter’s cards was carried by the ECZ. The total number of
replacements cards was more than 67,000. Voters were to get their replacements cards at
their respective and registered polling stations.

According to the ECZ, there were many problems associated with registration and
compilation of voter’s roll, for example a situation where a voter has a card but does not
appear on the voter register.

The Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) System used for registration of voters in Zambia is
able to pick multiple registration, therefore people were not able to register twice during the
registration period. The voters’ rolls were divided into streams and each stream consisted of
650 people and it was easy to identify the numbers because of the pictures in the voters’ roll.
The total numbers of streams were 9,314 in the whole country.

12
ELECTORAL CAMPAIGNS

The Mission came into the country only six days before the election but was able to note the
following in relation to electoral campaigns:

• The ECZ is empowered by law to issue a Code of Conduct governing campaigning

that is binding and legally enforceable.
• The environment during the electoral campaigns was characterized by peace and
tranquility.
• The contesting political parties campaigned freely
• There was no political party funding from either Government or the ECZ.
• There were no reported incidents of political violence or intimidation of voters
• Candidates had access to both print and electronic media
• The voters freely put on their political regalia without fear
• Observers were free to attend political rallies
• The political parties’ cadres, friends and supporters demonstrated a good level of
civic behaviour during the period of campaigns. There was no violence or
intimidation nor any other type of provocation; e.g. the removal of pamphlets and
other publicity materials of the Presidential Candidates.
• The City of Lusaka was very lively in the afternoon of 29th October 2008 when the
political parties concluded their public rallies that attracted large crowds, particularly
for the PF and MMD at different locations. This day was characterized by large
crowds at shopping malls, convoys of vehicles on the streets as political parties
marked their final electoral campaigns before the poll.

With the above background, the Mission concluded that the electoral campaign was
conducted in a peaceful environment, zero violence, intimidation or any other kind of unruly
behaviour that would have destabilized the Zambian democratic process.

RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING

In preparing for the election, the Electoral Commission of Zambia carried out the
recruitment and selection of staff and further organized training to prepare the staff for
manning the polling stations effectively. This recruitment exercise was carried out in the
various districts of the country and training took place in Lusaka. Poll staff included the
presiding officers, 6 elections officers deployed in each polling station. Most of the trainees
had experiences from managing the 2006 elections. The ECZ also deployed ushers who
guided the voters at the polling stations.

ACCREDITATION

In accordance with the law, the Electoral Commission of Zambia carried out the
accreditation exercise to all stakeholders, monitors and observers, members of both national

13
and international media. The accreditation exercise started ahead of the election until 30th
October 2008. As it is the practice the ECF Mission was exempted from paying accreditation
fees of USD 20 per person.

STAKEHOLDERS ENGAGEMENT

ECZ worked mainly with political parties and other electoral stakeholders such as the media
and NGOs to strengthen the preparations for the election. According to the ECZ, some
political parties as primary stakeholders posed a series of problems especially during ballot
paper consignment from Republic of South Africa and when the ballot paper was being
verified at Lusaka airport. Political parties were alleged to have spread rumours that the ECZ
had extra ballot papers to be used for vote rigging. This allegation made it difficult for ECZ
to deliver some ballot papers on time since there was need for further security measures to
guard against the interference of the delivery of ballot papers. The ECZ had to engage
Zambian Air Force to be ready to offer help should there be any shortage for ballot paper,
the electoral process was financed by Government of Zambia. The Mission could not
establish the donor support for the election but noted that there was a donor basket funding
for the 2006 elections.

14
 CHAPTER SIX
POLLING DAY

1. POLLING STATIONS

The polling stations were set up in public places such as schools, and Government
buildings. The code numbers of the polling stations were clearly shown on poster.

2. THE OPENING OF POLLING STATIONS.

A majority of polling stations visited opened on time. Only a few stations opened a
bit late due to logistical hi-cups.

3. MANAGEMENT OF POLLING STATIONS

In comparison with the layout of polling stations during the previous elections of 2006, the
lay-out of polling stations was quite satisfactory, allowing smooth flow of voters. The
polling centre was made of two to seven polling stations and each station had more than one
polling booth, and six agents who were adequately trained. Political party agents had the
electoral register which included: the name, the photo, the card number and the birth date of
the voter.

4. SECURITY.

All the polling stations had a minimum of two police officers to maintain peace and
security.

5. DOCUMENTS AND ELECTORAL MATERIALS

- Each book contained 50 numbered ballot papers.

- Electoral register
- Results paper
- Marker with indelible ink
- Stamp
- Envelopes
- Scissors
- Plastic bags
- File for vote counting.
- Record of vote counting

15
 6. CLOSING AND COUNTING OF VOTES.
The closing of polls took place at 6 pm. Voters who were in the queue at the time
of closing were allowed to vote.

The counting was done in the polling stations, in the presence of political parties’
witnesses, national and international observers. Some polling stations had security
agents who also assisted in the vote counting.

The seals of the ballot boxes were well wrapped and packed and the national
observers and political parties’ witnesses signed the vote counting report. There
were a few spoilt ballot papers.

CHAPTER SEVEN

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The Mission noted that the Electoral Commission of Zambia was adequately prepared
for the election and that a conducive environment existed for the electorate to exercise
its Right to vote. Electoral stakeholders are congratulated for all the cooperation and
support during all the phases of the election.

The Mission submits the following recommendations to the ECZ for consideration:

• Revisit the number of poll staff in each polling station to keep all the staff
usefully involved.
• Consider continuous registration for purposes of updating the voters’ roll.
• Strengthen voter education on replacement of voter registration cards.
• Revisit the law to accommodate the use of other identity cards outside the NRC.
• Improve the quality of indelible ink.

16
 Annex 1
Tel (+267) 3180012
C/O IEC –Botswana (+267) 3612400
7th Floor- Block 8
Fax (+267) 3180016
Government Enclave (+267) 3905205
P/Bag 00284 URL- www.sadc-ecf.org
Gaborone, Botswana

THE OBSERVATION STATEMENT SUBMITTED TO THE

Electoral Commission of Zambia on the 2008 Presidential Election.

INTRODUCTION
The Electoral Commissions Forum (ECF) of the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) Countries was invited by the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ)
through a letter dated 22nd September 2008 to observe the 2008 Presidential Election
scheduled for the 30th October 2008. In response to this invitation, the ECF duly deployed a
21- member Observer Mission.

The Mission hereby presents this Statement on its observations, a full report of which will be
availed at a later stage.

ABOUT THE ECF-SADC

This is an autonomous body of 14 Electoral Commissions in the SADC region which
cooperate and support one another on electoral matters. The Forum is governed by a
Constitution that seeks to promote, inter alia:

• Conditions conducive for free, fair and transparent elections, and

• Through the electoral process, Democracy as a political system of responsible and
accountable government.

The major rationale behind the ECF observing elections in the SADC region is to enhance
and consolidate the capacity of Election Management Bodies in the administration of
elections.

17
MISSION COMPOSITION
The Electoral Commissions represented on this ECF-SADC Observer Mission were from
the following countries:

• Angola,
• the Democratic Republic of Congo,
• Lesotho,
• Mozambique,
• Swaziland,
• Tanzania and
• Zimbabwe.

The first delegates arrived in Lusaka on the 24th October 2008. Hon. Retired Justice Lewis
Makame, Chairperson of the National Electoral Commission of Tanzania, was elected to
lead the mission.

BRIEF BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION OF ZAMBIA

The Mission was briefed by the ECZ on the level of its preparedness for the election and
was satisfied, because it was able to gather adequate information on key issues that are
central to the conduct of the forthcoming election.

CONSULTATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS

The Mission also consulted with a number of stakeholders through organising a seminar at
which some of them were invited. The following was gathered;

• The level of impartiality of the media in the coverage of the election;

• The historical and political background of Zambia elections and the current
electoral system, and
• Perspectives of Civil Society and Non-governmental Organisations on the
forthcoming election.

Due to time constraints, the Mission was unable to interact with political parties.

DEPLOYMENT
The Mission covered seven constituencies namely; Chawama, Kabwata, Kanyama, Mandevu,
Lusaka Central, Munali and Materu. All the teams managed to make pre-polling visits to
their assigned constituencies. These places are all within the urban area of Lusaka. The
Mission was not able to cover other areas of Zambia.

OBSERVATIONS
The Mission observed the following;
• The environment during the pre-poll period was generally quiet and peaceful
• The ECZ put all necessary logistics together to facilitate the efficient holding of the
election
• The contesting political parties campaigned freely

18
• There were no reported incidents of political violence or intimidation of voters
• Candidates had access to both print and electronic media
• Accreditation procedures were conducted smoothly
• There were unrestricted numbers of both local and international observers

With regard to Polling Day, the Mission observed that:

• In most areas the opening of polling stations procedures were done in accordance with
the electoral law and relevant regulations.
• Candidates and/or their agents were present at most of the polling stations.
• Foreign and local observers had unfettered access to polling stations. .
• There were adequate election materials in polling stations.
• Direction posters were not visibly placed and some of the polling stations were not
visibly located, so voters could not easily identify their polling stations
• The lay-out within the polling stations was generally satisfactory with the exception of
some polling booths facing the public and which therefore might have compromised the
secrecy of the ballot.
• Every voter produced his/her voter registration card and national identity card before
being allowed to vote.
• Once voting commenced at a polling station, the voting process was reasonably smooth
and fast.
• The polling staff were adequately trained to handle the elections.
• There was adequate number of police officers at each polling station.
• The closing of poll and counting procedures were conducted in accordance with the
electoral law.
• Voter turn out was average and there were only a few spoiled ballot papers.
• A number of would-be voters were turned away because they did not have either of the
two identity cards
• In some polling stations there was no control in the flow of people during counting.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Mission submits the following recommendations to Electoral Commission of Zambia

for consideration:

• Revisit the number of poll staff in each polling station to keep all the staff
involved.
• Consider continuous registration for purposes of updating the voters’ roll.
• Strengthen voter education on replacement of voter registration cards.
• Revisit the law to accommodate the use of other identity cards outside the NRC.
• Improve the quality of indelible ink.

19
CONCLUSION

As a result of the fore-going, the Mission is of the view that the Electoral Commission
of Zambia was adequately prepared for the election and that a conducive environment
existed for the electorate to exercise its will freely.

……………………………………….
(Retired Justice Lewis Makame)
Mission Leader

1st November 2008, Lusaka, Zambia.

. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Forum Presidency: Rev A. Malumalu - President (DRC), Justice A. Msosa -Vice President (Malawi)
EXCO: Chairperson: Justice I. Mambilima (Zambia), - Vice Chairperson: Chief S.G Dlamini (Swaziland), Justice A.C P C. de
Sousa ( Angola)Justice S. Gaongalelwe (Botswana) Mr A Rahman (Mauritius) M.K. Mwinyichande ( Zanzibar) Justice G. Chiweshe
( Zimbabwe)

20
 Annex 2

DEPLOYMENT PLAN- ECF MISSION IN Zambia Oct 2008

CAR Contact
Constituencies Name DESIGNATION DETAILS Numbers Remarks

Chawama Justice Lewis Makame Team Leader 4x4 978 315 111 Kafue Town - South
Kamohelo Chobokwane
Juba Chekenyere 968 406 440
Driver: RICHARD 977 636 368

Kabwata Sarah Kachingwe Team Leader 4x4 978 315 052 Kafue Town- South
Mjaka Mchanga 978 315 042
Ncumbi J Maziya 978315120
Driver: STEVE 97990 3897

Kanyama Kipoy Chimbelenge Team Leader 4x4 Chongwe town -East

Antonio Baptista 979 060 062
Interpreter; Michel Saraiva 955 753 218
Driver: JAMES 977 595 040

Mandevu Fernando C. Rodrigoues Team Leader 4x4 Chibombo Town- North

Venosa Mkwizu 978 059 663
Jermias Durzenta Timana 978 060 062
Driver: GIBSON 977 114 081

Lusaka Central Dr. Sisti Cariah Team Leader 4x4 Chongwe Town -East
Kisimba Lumbwe Albert 968 637 004
978 315 405
Driver: DORIS 977 415 616

Munali Antenisa Jose Franco Team Leader 4x4 978 059 663 Chongwe Town -East
978 060 062
Rajabu Kiravu
Driver: SUZYO 977 859 118

Toyota
Materu Kaulu Amunazo Team Leader Saloon 978 344 593 Lusaka Central
Clarisse Kavugho 978 344 564
French Interpreter Michel 979 766 881
Driver: BILLINGS 966 627 433

Toyota
SECRETARIAT Hilda Modisane Corolla 978 315 423 Cresta Golfview
Felistas Maziriri 968 406 464
Misheck Zakeo 978 315 367
Driver: PAT 977 775 647

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 Annex 3

Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries Observer Mission to Zambia – October 2008
List of delegates

Name Designation Institution Country Contact details

Kipoy W. National C.N.E Angola +912207812

Chimbelengue Commissioner +923392059
drkiwach@yahoo.com.br
drkiwach@hotmail.com

Antonio G. Provincial C.N.E Angola +244923494786

Baptista Commissioner maissoheme@hotmail.com

Fernando Costa Department C.N.E Angola fernandosetas@yahoo.com

Rodrigoues Officer +244924548634

Kaulu Amunazo Commissioner CEI / RDC DRC +243812400011

Aimee aimeekaulu@yahoo.fr

Kisimba Lumbwe Coordinator- CEI / RDC DRC +243812400020

Albert Katanga Region

Kamohelo District Electoral I.E.C Lesotho +26658006275

Chobokoane Officer chobokoane@iec.org.ls

Jermias Tumana N.E.C Mozambique +258829379229

sinticim@tvcabo.mz

Artemisa Franco Commissioner N.E.C Mozambique +258828400442

cpdh@tvcabo.co.mz

Ncumbi J. Maziya Commissioner E.B.C Swaziland +2686063550

22
Justice Lewis Chairman N.E.C Tanzania +255222113382
M.Makame Chairman_nec@excite.com

Mjaka H. Commissioner N.E.C Tanzania +255222114963

Mchanga uchguzitanzan@yahoo.com

Director of N.E.C Tanzania +255222127284

Rajabu Kiravu Elections rkiravu@yahoo.com

Dr Sisti Cariah IT Manager N.E.C Tanzania +255712558883

Spcariah3@yahoo.com

Principal State N.E.C Tanzania +255784207622

Venosa Mkwizu Attorney venosam@hotmail.com

Sarah Kachingwe Commissioner Z.E.C Zimbabwe +0026311874900

fellymaz@yahoo.com

Juba Chekenyere Director Admin Z.E.C Zimbabwe +2634759130

jubachekenyere@yahoo.com

Felistas Maziriri Protocol & Z.E.C Zimbabwe +26311878616

Liaison +2634748398
+263912682256
fellymaz@yahoo.com

+267 3180012
Hilda Modisane Programme ECF Secretariat Botswana +267 71448925
Officer hmodisane@gov.bw

23
Annex 4
Election Results

Voting statistics
Registered Voters 3 944 135
Votes Cast 1 791 806
Voter Turnout 45.43
Valid Votes 1 768 210
Invalid Votes 23 596
% Invalid 1.32
Table Source

Electoral Commission of Zambia 2008.

Results
%
Candidate Party Votes
Votes
Movement for Multiparty Democracy
Rupiah Banda 718 359 40.63
(MMD)
Michael MC Sata Patriotic Front 683 150 38.64
Hakainde
United National Independence Party (UNIP) 353 018 19.96
Hichilema
Godfrey K Miyanda Heritage Party (HP) 13 683 0.77
Total 1 768 210 100.00
Table Source

Electoral Commission of Zambia 2008.

24
Notes:

25