Chief appeals for clarification over red card and blue card

Chief William Sumbe of Ratard Plantation on Santo says he heard through FM 107 last Thursday night that one of the bills to be dealt with by parliament this week will see some urban holders of red cards returned to blue cards.

This will mean red card holders that will change their cards to blue will no longer vote in the municipal elections.

The chief says he is speaking on behalf of over 2,000 registered voters who live in a number of rural areas including Ratard, Perrol, Usa, Kaprikol, Lenkar, Show Ground and Aore.

The chief says the Government has amended their cards to allow them to use red cards to vote in the national election in 2012.

“Now in 2015, it is municipal election and provincial election year, and how are we going to vote?” he says.

While the particular amendment was only for the national election, the chief says when registration officers from Sanma Province and Luganville visited their areas; they removed their blue cards from them and replaced them with red cards.

“But with our red cards, the officers from the electoral office say we have no right to vote in the municipal election.

“If this is the case it seems we are not allowed to vote in the provincial election too.

“So it looks as though the amendment has deprived us of our constitutional right to vote in the elections,” he says.

“I am speaking on behalf of over 2,000 registered voters in the areas named.

“I appealed strongly with the electoral officers when they visited us but received no satisfactory answer.

“I told them that as they work in close cooperation with State Law, they should give us a satisfactory answer but they said they said they would need to check with Port Vila.

“It seems they have deprived us of our constitutional right to vote and I am appealing to the Government to ensure that if they go ahead with the amendment, through which I heard Minister of Land, Ralph Regenvanu said he stands to lose 600 red cards as a result of it, to make sure they do not make the same mistake which also affected MP George Wells.”

Chief Sumbe says any amendment should make sure that registered voters are not deprived of their constitutional right to vote, but are allowed time to change their cards.