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Voter registration list on display from August 15 to September 11
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- Major shortage of Grama Niladhari officers hampers process; one officer handles two to three divisions
By Ryan Casiechetty
The voter registration list is to be finalised and displayed to the people from August 15 to September 11, an Elections Commission official said.
During that time period, the people are requested to check whether their names are displayed accurately in the list, and changes can be made accordingly.
Meanwhile the shortage of Grama Niladharis has hampered the registration process requiring the Commission to extend the time period.
When compared to the past few years, this year has been challenging for the registration process due to the severe shortage of Grama Niladhari officers, officials said.
Currently there is a shortage of more than 3,000 Grama Niladhari officials, requiring the current officers to handle more than two to three divisions.
In some instances, the Elections Commission appointed additional officers to oversee the Grama Niladhari officers’ work, which was not practical due to the officers not being qualified as Grama Niladhari officers, officials pointed out.
This resulted in additional work for the existing Grama Niladhari officers.
Sri Lanka Eksath Grama Niladhari Association President Saman Perera said there was no proper system implemented by the Elections Commission to look into the Grama Niladhari’s workload and the registration process of the voter’s list.
He said many Grama Niladhari officers had retired, and new officers were not recruited due to the country’s economic situation. He suggested the Government re-consider the decisions taken on the Grama Niladhari officers’ retirement age and take them back on a contract basis as a short-term solution.
People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) Director Rohana Hettiarachchi said a central database system with the help of the latest technology should be set up by the Government. Further, the online voter registration system, which was set up by the Elections Commission, would take more time to be successful as it was still in its introductory stage.
“A central database system implementation could be an effective system to reduce the constant delays that occur in the voter’s registration process,” Mr. Hettiarachchi said.
Further explaining his suggestion, the birth certificate of each individual must be registered with the Elections Commission, enabling it to eventually register a person upon his or her turning 18 years of age.
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