Leaders in Vihiga County led by Governor Moses Akaranga are shocked by low voter registration in the region during the ongoing voter registration exercise in the country.
He said only 12,700 residents have been registered as voters since the exercise kicked off last week and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) had set a target of registering 110,000 new voters at the end of the exercise in the County.
The county boss said there were more than 2000 uncollected identification cards at the office of Registrations of persons in Emuhaya Sub County.
He urged the parents of children who applied for identification cards and haven’t collected them to make sure they have collected them to enable them register as voters before the end of the exercise.
“We want the locals who have not collected their identifications cards to go to their respective offices and collect them,” Akaranga said.
Akaranga called on the local administration to ensure those uncollected IDs reach the owners adding that this can be achieved through local barazas in the villages.
“All chiefs and their assistants must push locals to collect those IDs and if possible hold barazas to ensure this information reaches them,” said Akaranga.
He called upon all leaders in the County to move around and push for massive voter registration to achieve the set target.
“We as leaders must lead by example and am urging all leaders in this county to take up the responsibility and ensure every individual eligible to register as a voter does so, we must reach the target placed by the (IEBC),” Akaranga said.