ZAMBIA: Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa promises to step up the fight against poverty if re-elected

Zambia approaches elections on Thursday (September 28) under the cloud of the last poll in 2001, a shambles of missing ballots, opaque count procedures and bitter charges of vote-rigging that left many voters doubtful of democracy. This year officials vow things will be different, and have laid on everything from new satellite technology to portable electric lanterns in hopes of ensuring the polls are regarded as among Africa's finest. The stakes are high, and not only for Zambia's four million registered voters. The disputed 2001 poll elected President Levy Mwanawasa, the leader of the ruling Movement for Multiparty Democracy who is seeking a second five year term on Thursday against a strong challenge by Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata. Mwanawasa is campaigning on his strong economic record, including a 7.2 billion U.S. dollar (USD) debt relief package from the West, while Sata has accused the government and foreign investors -- particularly Chinese mining companies -- of doing little for Zambia's poor. "We want to work hard so we can bring it (poverty) down. God has been kind to us. He has given us plenty of land, plenty of soil, good soil,"Mwanawasa told a campaign rally on Thursday. Opinion polls have delivered starkly different results on which candidate may emerge the victor in the copper-rich nation, leaving political analysts to predict Thursday's race will be both close and closely watched. The Zambian Election Commision (ECZ) has introduced satellite links between Lusaka and 68 of Zambia's 72 districts to transmit poll results instantly, dumping the system of phones and faxes which was a source of controversy in 2001. The ECZ bought portable electric lamps to ensure the vote count can continue into the night in rural districts with no electric power and took steps to ensure all Zambians who have reached the legal voting age of 18 by polling day would be allowed to cast ballots. Aircraft delivered ballots across Zambia ahead of polling day, dropping papers in rural districts stretching from the border with Democratic Republic of Congo to the Zambezi River to prevent a repeat of the 2001 fiasco, which saw some voting stations only receiving ballots after polling formally closed. But while the ECZ hopes Thursday's vote goes smoothly, Zambians could see a tense wait for results. Under a new law, enacted after disputes over 2001 vote count totals by the media and electoral officials, no media will be allowed to predict the winner of the presidential and parliamentary races until the last vote is counted. This would make the final announcement of the victories in the presidential and parliamentary races unlikely before Sunday. pr/jrc

ITN Source | September 27, 2006

Tags:. .approaches. .opinion. .districts. .counted. .poor