Lakes State trains election officials

The Lakes State High Elections Committee (SHEC), in collaboration with the National Elections Commission (NEC) and the state government, has trained 34 election officials.

The three-day training, which concluded on Sunday in Rumbek, brought together 16 county constituency returning officers and their assistants appointed by the NEC. It focused on voter registration procedures and preparations for the elections.

Abraham Gop Achien, a facilitator, said the returning officers and their assistants would train 1,890 voter registration centre staff across the state’s eight counties next week.

“Today, we are training 16 returning officers and their assistants, covering the eight counties of Lakes State. Next week, we will train 1,890 voter registration staff at different centres,” he said.

Achien said Lakes State has 270 voter registration centres, each expected to have seven staff members, bringing the total number of personnel to be trained to 1,890.

Daniel Laat Kon, the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) coordinator in Lakes State, urged the officials to uphold impartiality, transparency and professionalism, saying their conduct would influence public confidence in the electoral process.

“For us to have free, fair and credible elections in South Sudan, we must adhere to the principles of impartiality, transparency and professionalism,” he said.

He cautioned the officials against misconduct, saying they must perform their duties in accordance with their training and avoid actions that could undermine the NEC’s credibility.

Professor Kot Kuocnin Kuer, chairperson of the Lakes State High Elections Committee, urged the officials to prepare for their responsibilities, saying supervisors would visit the counties to monitor their work.

Drawing on his experience during the 2010 general elections, Kuer said preparations had been rushed and election officials had faced resistance while carrying out their duties.

“You have to equip yourself here so that everyone knows you are a person who is trained and qualified to do the work,” he said.

He urged the officials to perform their duties transparently and without fear or favour, warning against personal relationships that could compromise their independence or damage the reputation of the state election committee.

Kuer said the officials would also play a role in training personnel recruited to work at voter registration centres, describing their contribution as part of a historic effort to organise South Sudan’s first general elections since it gained independence in 2011.

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