2017 polls to roll

By MALUM ALU
ELECTORAL Commissioner Patilias Gamato says the Government has released K18 million to start the updating of the common roll for the 2017 general election.
The commission estimates that there will be 750,000 names to be added to the 4.7 million registered during the 2012 general election. The final list of voters is expected to be released in April next year.
The issuing of writs next year will be on Thursday, April 20. Nominations also begin on that day and close on April 27.
Voting starts on June 24 and ends on July 8. The return of writs is scheduled for, or before, July 24. For the LLG election, the return of writs is on Aug 7.
The exercise begins in Milne Bay this weekend with the training of enrolment agents.
“We will train the enrollment agents who will then go out with the enrollment forms.
“We estimate it will take one to two months of fieldwork, after which they will bring the enrollment forms back to headquarters for data processing.
“We hope to give ourselves one month for data entry. So the exercise in a province will take three to four months. It depends on the size of the province.”
Gamato said the exercise would be rolled out in the provinces one at a time.
“For the whole nation, we expect to complete the exercise around November, December,” he said.
“Once we complete the exercise, we give ourselves one or two months for the objection period. If there are objections, we will do a mop-up to make corrections.
“Hopefully by March, with the election to be in April, we should have the final list.”
Gamato said the names of the 4.7 million voters from 2012 were posted on the Electoral Commission website.
“If we add another 750,000 voters, it might go past 5.5 million,” he said.rcise (updating of common roll) begins in Milne Bay this weekend with the training of enrolment agents.
“We will train the enrollment agents who will then go out with the enrollment forms.
“We estimate it will take one to two months of fieldwork, after which they will bring the enrollment forms back to headquarters for data processing.
“We hope to give ourselves one month for data entry. So the exercise in a province will take three to four months.
“It depends on the size of the province.”
Gamato said the exercise would be rolled out in the provinces one at a time. “For the whole nation, we expect to complete the exercise around November, December,” he said.
“Once we complete the exercise, we give ourselves one or two months for the objection period.
“If there are objections, we will do a mop-up to make corrections.
“Hopefully by March, with the election to be in April, we should have the final list.”
Gamato said the names of the 4.7 million voters from 2012 were posted on the Electoral Commission website.
“If we add another 750,000 voters, it might go past 5.5 million,” he said.