All the printers used to produce voter cards in Mozambique’s current voter registration are being replaced, after massive problems with the existing printers, says Mozambican news agency, AIM. Citing reports on Thursday’s issue of the “Mozambique Political Process Bulletin”, produced by AWEPA (Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa) and CIP (Centre for Public Integrity), AIM said across the country there have been problems with the computers and printers used in registration and, perhaps most embarrassing of all, some of the registration brigades have not even had toner for their printers. These problems meant that, in the largest province, Nampula, half the registration posts were not open on Wednesday.
In Cuamba, in the northern province of Niassa, only one out of 11 registration posts was functioning, and the others had no toner.
Similarly, in Tete city, most of the 32 registration posts were closed on Wednesday, while in Marromeu, in Sofala province, nobody at all was registered in the first three days of the registration, because the wrong cartridges for the printers were sent. The right ones arrived on Tuesday, and only then could registration begin.
On Thursday morning, Felisberto Naife, the director of the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE) announced that all the printers would be replaced and at least 750 new printers are being imported from South Africa. The correct toner has already been imported.
Naife pointed out that the company which won the tender to supply the registration materials was responsible for correcting the problems, and is bringing in the new printers at its own cost. The tender was won by the Mozambican company Artes Grafica, which is part of the Academica group, in partnership with the South African firm Lithotech.
Somehow Artes Grafica/Lithotech had brought in large numbers of printers that were not compatible with the rest of the equipment.
Full Article: BERNAMA – Mozambique Imports New Printers For Voter Registration.