By D. Enoch Sandoe in Rivercess, Liberia
Ahead of the December 26 residential runoff election, community leaders and other stakeholders in Liberian southeastern Rivercess County are keen on ensuring that everything be done to provide adequate voter and civic education to citizens to reduce the high number of invalid votes.
Out of 25,305 votes cast in Rivercess in the October 10, 2017 first round of election, 1,997 were invalid votes in the first round of the presidential election.
For the representative election, out of 12,207 people that voted in electoral District #1 in River Cess, 894 of the votes were invalid whereas Electoral District #2 got 635 invalid votes from the total number of 12,816 cast.
Nationally, the National Elections Commission (NEC) announced a total number of 88,000 invalid votes.
The upcoming runoff election is between incumbent Vice President Joseph Boakai of the ruling Unity Party (UP) and Senator George Weah of the main opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), both of whom got the two highest votes among the 20 contenders. They both failed to get the constitutionally required absolute majority of 50% plus one vote.
With just days to next Tuesday’s presidential runoff polls, a Community Leader in River Cess has called on the NEC to carry out more voter and civic education, in order to avoid huge number of invalid votes in the county.
Making the call recently in Sand Beach Mining Camp here, the Camp Master of Sand Beach Francis Thomas said if NEC Carries on enough civic education that the number of invalid votes in River Cess will reduce.
Thomas believes that the Commission did not do much voter education prior to the October 10, 2017 presidential and representatives elections in the Country.
Since the call was made by the Sand Beach Camp Master, the local NEC officials in Rivercess are yet to officially comment.
As at Thursday, there was not a single civic educator seen in any community of the county, though the NEC has been training it’s workers for the runoff election scheduled for December 26.