PNG Elections: Gamato allows uses of preliminary roll

Electoral Commissioner Patilias Gamato has allowed the use of the preliminary or draft electoral roll this elections.

He said in areas where the bulk of voters do not find their names on the Electoral Roll, the preliminary roll can be used by election officials.

“What I’ve decided is that they can go back and use the preliminary roll,” says the commissioner.

Commissioner Gamato explained that the preliminary roll is the first or draft roll that they did when the enrolment forms came in and data was entered. After the objection, the outcome is the final roll.

“The final roll has some issue so I’ve made that decision where provinces are having issues with the electoral roll, we are asking them to use the preliminary rolls,” he said.

A lot of polling venues around the country have reported the issue of electoral roll where eligible voters’ names have either gone missing since the last election, or were found on the Electoral Commission Roll on the site but are not on the electoral roll at polling venues.

As the National Capital District goes into its one-day polling today, Commissioner Gamato said the preliminary roll can also be used as per the discretion of the NCD Election Manager.

As of Monday, 17 of the 22 provinces in the country have started polling.

These are the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, Central, Chimbu, East New Britain, East Sepik, Eastern Highlands, Gulf, Hela, Madang, Manus, Milne Bay, Morobe, New Ireland, Northern, West New Britain, East Sepik and Western Province.

“Some have started, some are slowly starting but out of the 22 provinces, the 17 have started in some LLGs,” he said.

There was a delay in the Hela and Chimbu provinces and polling is expected to go ahead today.