1. Common roll update corruption is now finished. Those conducting the common roll updates have been bribed all over the country to make sure that the names of people in a particular electorate were either inflated or (in the case of areas with opposing candidates) were deflated.
2. Printing of common rolls: Bribery has also been widespread at this juncture to make sure the false figures actually get printed.
3. For the last month and more, the known election officers (election manager, returning officers, assistant returning officers) are being offered large bribes or being threatened with their life to pressure them to swing the election in the briber's direction. This has been especially common in the highlands, but even is occurring in certain island electorates. Also pretty widespread in Momase region.
4. For the last week and continuing up to now, senior election officials have been bribed at various parts all over the country (but especially in the highlands) to make sure that the distribution of ballot papers will be done selectively. Purposely ballot papers are coming up short so that on election day, people in certain regions who strongly support an opposing candidate will find that there aren't enough ballots and they can't vote. End of story. A simple trick that is being accomplished right now as I write with a simple but hefty bribe.
5. Security forces are being bribed and threatened now to look the other way. Everyone knows that every security has their price, it doesn't matter what their bosses say about taking bribes. Waigani has already gotten wind of just how widespread and successful this is likely to be in 2012.
6. When the election starts, especially in the highlands, women will be forced to vote certain ways by their husbands and wantoks also will be watched carefully to make sure they vote a certain way. While this corruption is widespread in every election its not an area where a candidate can control things with a simple bribe. In many villages, leaders will feed and guard election officials while youth outside mark all the ballots in favour of a certain candidate.
7. Plans are already in place for hijacking ballot boxes when they're leaving certain polling place. Most of this never gets reported in the newspaper so it is an effective way of getting rid of an opposition candidate's votes. Sometimes the ballot boxes are destroyed but usually either opposition votes are removed and in certain areas it is planned to replace them with fake ballots (see below).
8. Heaps of counterfeit ballots have already been printed overseas and smuggled into the country for use to replace the legitimate ballots in the ballot boxes of certain areas.
9. Counting room corruption is where some political groups are now planning to focus most of their efforts. It is all a matter of bribing the right election officials AND associated security. Tens of thousands of kina is likely to be the going price for this bribery.
IF EVERYTHING WORKS OUT AS PLANNED, MOST OF THE ABOVE WILL TAKE PLACE AND YOU'LL NEVER HEAR ABOUT IT. WE BASICALLY HAVE NO INFLUENCE BECAUSE THE ELECTION WILL BE DETERMINED BY THE HIGHER UPS.
How can Electoral Commission, the Police and Defence play their part to avoid this?
The above are very valid points and it is very likely to happen, especially in the highlands region. The political parties and candidates are hell bound to do anything and everything under the sun to get into the parliament.
What is the EC and the security teams strategies to foil this evil plan so PNGeans elect their leaders in a fair, free, transparent and safely manner? From the points above, we are aware that certain polling officials and security personals have been heavily bribed so this election is swayed their way.
If EC, Police and Defence are very neutral and believe that the election must be run in a safe, fair, free and transparent manner, I would suggest the EC, Police and Defence add this strategy to the list of strategies they have.
The polling officials and security personals are involved during the 3 phases of electoral processes; election campaigns, polling and counting and henceforth declarations. Some polling officials and security personals, by now are dining with politicians and intending candidates in the cover of darkness.
During the campaign period, political parties and candidates have been seen or trying to align themselves with electoral officials and security personals. By now the political parties and the candidates know who their foes and friends are in the Electoral Commission and the security personal. And they would like to maintain that friendship from campaigns period to polling and finally to the counting room.
The political parties and candidates believe this statuesque will be maintained during the polling and the counting and are heavily betting on them through financial offers or threats on the other if situations do not favour the political parties and candidates. And I strongly believe the some polling officials and security personals involved in such imbecile acts are denying the rights of every citizen to vote freely and fair.
I would like to suggest the following strategy to foil this evil plan to so PNGeans can vote free and fair. I strongly suggest to Electoral Commissioner, Police Commissioner and Defence Commander to, as much as possible to rotate their personals, both EC officials and security personals as much as possible.
I will give an example of such arrangement in this way. If EC officials and security personals have been in the electorates during the campaign period, during the voting, they should be rotated to another district. Eg, all electrical officials and security personals staged in Wabag district during the campaign periods should be rotated with electoral officials and security personals from Kompiam Ambum and the Kompiam Ambum officials should come to Wabag and conduct the polling. In this way a new team of EC officials and security personals are involved in the polling.
During the counting, new electoral officials and security personals should come from another province. Eg, all EC officials and security personals involved in polling in Enga province should be rotated with a new team, probably from, Mt Hagen. In this way, we will have new EC officials and security personals during the polling and counting.
By this way, if those parties, politicians or candidates have been bribing these officials during the campaigns, polling time, new people will be in charge of the polling and counting.
By then we will have a free and fair election. And the candidate elected MPs will be the people’s wish and not someone born out from counting rooms, as have been seen in many cases in PNG.
I. MHAN
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