ECZ Faces Accusations Of Recruiting Ruling Party Members As Poll Staff Ahead Of August 13 Vote

47 Views The Electoral Commission of Zambia is under fire over the recruitment of polling staff, with allegations that the list of successful applicants has been stacked with ruling party members and outsiders at the expense of locals who sat aptitude tests. The claims gained fresh momentum this week after ECZ published the official list […]

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The Electoral Commission of Zambia is under fire over the recruitment of polling staff, with allegations that the list of successful applicants has been stacked with ruling party members and outsiders at the expense of locals who sat aptitude tests.

The claims gained fresh momentum this week after ECZ published the official list of poll staff. The names, citizens say, match almost exactly with lists that were leaked weeks earlier suggesting that ECZ was secretly working with the United Party for National Development to identify and recruit polling staff. What was once dismissed as rumor is now being pointed to as proof, because many of those who applied and sat for aptitude tests have been left out.

At the center of the storm is ECZ Chairperson Mwangala Zaloumis and commissioners including Major General Vincent Mbaulu Mukanda, retired, and Mcdonald Chipenzi. Sources and local reports say they have been moving from province to province, meeting Town Clerks and Council Secretaries. In those meetings they have been demanding the surrender of aptitude test results. The example most cited is Nakonde, where officials were reportedly asked to hand over the test records directly.

The fallout is playing out in districts across the country.

In Serenje, a group of youths who sat for aptitude tests last Saturday turned up to question the final list. They said only a small number of Serenje applicants made it. Holding torn pieces of paper they claimed contained names of local applicants, they argued that most of the people on the ECZ list are from outside the district. They want the Commission to review the exercise and explain the criteria used. Their main demand is that the process be transparent, fair and impartial.

A similar complaint came from Kapiri Mposhi. Presumptive poll staff there became agitated after seeing the final list. They said names of UPND cadres who did not sit for the aptitude test appeared, while names of locals who did write the test had disappeared. The question being asked repeatedly is where ECZ was when the list was compiled, and who influenced it.

In Mwense, the concern is even sharper. A source who asked not to be named said the polling staff list is dominated by UPND aligned civil servants and cadres. The source warned that the National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity now faces an uphill battle and must urgently deploy strong and reliable polling agents.

“Please my identity should be hidden. I am worried NRPUP chances of winning this election are now slim having seen the list of poll staff all aligned with UPND. NRPUP should now ensure that it engages strong and reliable polling agents otherwise these guys are determined to rig the elections. The whole process of selecting poll staff has been in shambles. Most of these poll staff are UPND aligned civil servants and cadres. They picked those who did not write aptitude test,” the source said.

The recurring complaint in Mwense and elsewhere is that people who never wrote the aptitude test are being appointed, while qualified local applicants are ignored.

In Serenje, the protest was public. Youths said the delay in releasing results added to suspicions, and that the sudden appearance of outsiders on the list undermined confidence. They appealed to ECZ to come clean on how selections were made and to ensure that locals who participated in the process are not sidelined.

Across the districts, the pattern described is the same. Locals who showed up for testing, waited for results, and expected to serve in their communities are seeing their names missing. In their place are names of people perceived to be linked to the ruling party, and in many cases people from other districts.

ECZ has not yet issued a comprehensive public response to the specific allegations. The Commission has previously said recruitment is done according to guidelines and that merit, residency and availability are considered. But with less than a week to the election, that explanation is not calming nerves.

The timing makes the issue more sensitive. Polling staff are the people who will manage ballot boxes, verify voters, issue ballot papers and count votes at polling stations on August 13. If the public believes the staff are partisan, trust in the entire process erodes quickly.

Opposition parties and independent candidates are now telling their supporters to be vigilant. The advice being given is to recruit alert polling agents, to check the staff list at each polling station, and to report irregularities immediately.

Civil society groups have also called for clarity. They say ECZ must publish the criteria, show how many people applied per district, and explain why so many local applicants were excluded.

For many young people who sat the tests, this is not just about a job. It is about being part of an election in their own community. They argue that using people from outside the district creates logistical problems and fuels suspicion. They also say it sends the wrong message about neutrality.

As the country heads into the final stretch of the campaign, the polling staff recruitment has become one of the biggest points of contention. The leaked lists, the matching official lists, the meetings with council officials, and the stories from Serenje, Kapiri Mposhi, Mwense and Nakonde have combined to create a narrative that ECZ must now address directly.

Voters will decide on August 13. But before that, they want assurance that the people running polling stations are neutral and that the process that put them there was clean. Without that, the Commission risks going into election day with a cloud over one of the most basic building blocks of a credible poll.