August Polls: Leading opposition party, NRPUP, accuses ECZ of ‘suspicious secrecy’ over ballot paper handling

The National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity (NRPUP) has accused the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) of failing to disclose full information on the movement, arrival and storage of Ballot Papers from Dubai. NRPUP Chief Presidential Advisor and Tonse Alliance Secretary General, Dr. Chris Zumani Zimba, said the party was deeply shocked, disturbed and disappointed with ECZ’s handling of the process.

In a press statement issued on Saturday, Zimba noted that the 2026 first consignment of ballot papers was expected to arrive Saturday at Kenneth Kaunda International Airport in Lusaka. Zimba listed seven key concerns it said ECZ had failed to address, such as no stakeholders engagement, lack of schedule and logistics details and storage and security concerns, among others. “As National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity (NRPUP), we are deeply shocked, disturbed and disappointed that our Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) is managing the movement and handling of ballot papers from Dubai to Zambia’s Lusaka International Airport with suspicious secrecy by blacking us out as opposition stakeholders from knowing crucial information at every stage,” he said.

Zimba said there had never been a Stakeholders Meeting to update political parties on the scope, procedures and mandate of local ballot verification teams, hence, everyone including NRPUP was in the dark so far apart from ECZ. He also alleged that ECZ had stubbornly failed to provide any meaningful advance information to the stakeholders such as the Parking List. “Therefore, as stakeholders, we are ignorantly lost of what type of ballot papers we are receiving tomorrow, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday as flights arrive in Lusaka,” Zimba stated.

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He added that ECZ had not disclosed the full daily schedule of ballot papers and their categories from Sunday to Friday, nor the vessel and route to be used. Zimba further questioned whether the ballot papers would come on a commercial flight or chartered plane, and whether there would be stopovers for refueling. Zimba alleged that stakeholders had not been given an opportunity to physically inspect storage warehouses at the airport and in Silverest and that the party did not know how long ballot papers would be kept at the airport, where exactly, and by who.

“Additionally, we have not yet agreed with ECZ on the extra security measures to the warehouses where the ballot papers will be kept. As NRPUP, this is one aspect we treasure and treat very crucial,” he said. Zimba further demanded details on vehicles to be used to transport ballot boxes, including number plates and names of drivers. “Lastly, ECZ has strangely not availed us with any information on the number of vehicles that will receive and pick the ballot papers from the airport, when and time, the number plates of the vehicles and full names of the drivers who shall be carrying these ballot boxes,” he said.

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