Failed 2017 electoral roll blamed for poor turnout

POLLING booths, schedules and a failed electoral roll were some of the main causes of unequal representation during the 2017 national election, according to a report.
Dr Nicole Haley, a research fellow at the Australian National University, presented a report in Port Moresby showing variables in population across the country which suggested that certain locations required more polling booths than others.
“In some places where the population is few, polling is brought to the people, whereas in others, a crowd gathers around the polls and most people don’t get the chance to vote due to conflicts that spur up out of the crowd. Most women don’t get to vote in those areas because they’re afraid of violence,” she said.
Haley said most of the people the research team talked to admitted that they did not want to vote because the polling stations were over-crowded and conflicts are likely to occur which could result in violence.
Most of them also could not find their names on the electoral roll and there were not enough ballot papers.
“These are factors which contribute to unequal representation as well as electoral misbehaviour and malfeasance,” she said.
She said the 2017 elections saw many ballot boxes destroyed, hijacked or set aside compared to previous elections.
“In most places the ballot boxes were destroyed because of problems with the electoral rolls and there were not enough ballot papers.
“This leads to polling being delayed.”