Voter drive extended for one day
The National Election Committee (NEC) decided to extend voter registration by only one day after pleas from the opposition and civil society to extend the deadline due to more than one million citizens failing to register in time. The new voter list, with 7.7 million names on it, only represents 80 percent of the more than nine million eligible voters across the country. NEC president Sik Bun Hok yesterday lauded the effort to get more than 80 percent of the country on the new voter rolls, yet agreed to add one day to the registration drives taking place in more than 1,600 commune offices across the country after repeated requests from the opposition CNRP and human rights organizations. The NEC claimed that adding one day would “affect” its efforts and the time it will take to verify the registration data, procedures and technical characteristics of the voter rolls. However, millions will be left off voter registration lists for the coming commune elections in 2017 and the national election in 2018. NEC spokesman Hang Puthea dismissed the CNRP’s claims and said three months was “more than enough” time to register the whole country.
