Northern Bahr el Ghazal gives staff time off to help voter registration

By Ngor Arol Garang

November 17 2010 (KHARTOUM) – Authorities from the southern state of Northern Bahr el Ghazal said on Wednesday they have given holidays to both public servants to help referendum staff in voter registration processes.

Voter registration on the upcoming vote on the independence of south Sudan due in the next January 2011 commenced on Monday and will continue until 1 December 2010.

Speaking from Aweil town, capital of Northern Bahr el Ghazal state, the Deputy Governor, Dut Dut Yel, told Sudan Tribune that voter registration in all the five counties of the states entered its third day peacefully.

“There are no problems with registration processes in the state. It is progressing well in all the five counties,” said Dut

Dut, who doubles up as the state minister of local government, said his administration has given the all employees holiday to help referendum staff do proper sensitization for voter registration processes.

“We have given all government employees holidays to help referendum staff in registration processes because we have realized that massive turn out of our people is already overwhelming registration centres. A lot of people are turning out for registration. This outweighs number of the registering staff hence decided to give holidays to our employees so that referendum staff cover all the areas within the schedule,” said the deputy governor.

Robert Majok Kuol, a member of the five member high executive committee in the state, also told Sudan Tribune from Aweil town that registration process progressively enters it third day with increased turning out in all the 265 registration centres in the state.

“The number of people coming out for registration process is increasing. We thought the turnings out during initial days of the registration were the biggest but each day comes with increased figures of registered potential voters. In Wanyjok today, I was told by the registering staff members that they have registered a figure close to 500 people from early arrivals. That was around ten o’clock in the morning when I received this report. I did not go there again this evening but I think they might have reached 1,000 or more by now,” said Kuol.

Moses Akok Kuol, a deputy chairperson of the referendum commission in Aweil East County, told Sudan Tribune from Wanyjok, an administrative headquarters of the county, that numbers of registered voters have increased throughout 100 registration centres.

“From our supervision tours, we have seen that numbers of the registered potential voters are ever increasing on hourly basis. Most of the registration centres we visited today were all busy. We were not able to talk to head of some of the registration centres today because their time was not allowing. They were all engaged in registration processes,” said Akok.

Akok also said registration centres which did not receive their materials in the first day of the exercise have received all their materials by Tuesday.

“All the registration centres have received” voter registration materials he said.

(ST)