EC’s job to fix LLG roll: Sinai

ELECTORAL Commissioner Simon Sinai says the local level government (LLG) voter roll update is a mandatory function of the commission and urged his staff to take the lead to update it before ward elections in June.
Sinai asked staff from the commission to go out and conduct the voter enrolment update for the 2024 LLG elections instead of relying on temporary election workers.
“I am asking you all a favour, can we do it (voter update) ourselves? he told his election managers and staff.
“The roll update is one of our mandatory functions provided in the Organic Law on National and LLG Elections and we should be the ones taking the lead in this exercise.
“This is our job and we know it better than anyone.”
Sinai said the voter update was one of the primary functions of the commission and staff had to take ownership and play a lead role in management, supervision and ensure the process was undertaken correctly with all necessary steps thoroughly followed.
Sinai said the idea of engaging outsiders to help with roll update should be discouraged as it was clearly the responsibility of election managers, assistant election managers and staff from headquarters.
He said due to funding constraints, commission staff needed to step up and start preparing to conduct the voter enrolment exercise in their respective provinces and districts to ensure all eligible voters were captured using the new enrolment model that was agreed to and adopted at the workshop.
He added that under the new enrolment model, a clan-based roll in family order listing would be created for each council ward in every LLG across PNG and the exercise was set to start as early as next month before the writs for the LLG elections were issued in June.
Sinai said a budget had been submitted to Finance and Planning and Treasury departments where work would begin once funding was made available.