The stations will help especially patients, their caregivers and hospitals’ workers to cast their votes.
Charles Munyaneza, the Executive Secretary of the National Electoral Commission, told IGIHE on Thursday that the move responds to previous complaints of the people who said they could not vote from hospitals.
He said all large hospitals such as referral, district’s and some private hospitals will have a polling station.
“We shall have a polling station in 33 large hospitals so that patients who can walk, their caregivers and hospitals’ workers can vote,” said Mr Munyaneza.
He noted, however, that transit centres will not have polling stations though they are not deprived of voting rights. The centres accommodate mainly street people and others with conducts offending the general public.
“We do not know those people in transit centres. They are there today and released tomorrow; some do not even have required documents; we have not considered them,” he said.
People with disabilities have also been considered for ease of casting votes. Visually impaired, for instance, will have polling cards written in Braille.
Registered voters are around 7.2 million, up from the last year’s 6.9 million who voted in presidential elections.
There are 46,955 voters expected to vote from 115 polling stations in Diaspora, up from the last year’s 44,362 in 98 stations.
In the country, 2,356 polling stations will be used, up from the last year’s 2,342.
The parliamentary elections slated for September 2-4 together with the last year’s presidential have a budget of Rwf5.4 billion.
Leave a Reply