By 
Former Kasenengwa Constituency lawmaker, Sensio Banda, has urged Zambians to demand a transparent, equitable, and fully resourced National Registration Card (NRC) and voter registration exercise across all regions.
Banda highlighted reports from Northern, Muchinga, and Luapula provinces, which point to an NRC exercise plagued by persistent “technical challenges.”
In an interview with Zambia Monitor, he noted that appointed officers often spent days without essential supplies such as ink and paper or were hampered by faulty equipment.
“The foundation of a fair democracy rests on the principle of universal suffrage, that every eligible citizen has the unobstructed right to vote,” Banda stated.
He warned that failing to provide this fundamental tool for democratic participation risks creating a class of second-tier citizens whose voices could be muted in the next election.
Banda described the unevenness in NRC issuance as more than a logistical blunder, calling it “a betrayal of democratic ideals.”
“Mounting evidence from Zambia’s recent National Registration Card (NRC) issuance exercise suggests this foundation is cracking, raising serious concerns that a deliberate, strategic form of voter suppression is being deployed against specific regions and their populace,” he said.
He emphasized that the NRC, a mandatory document for voter registration and access to government services and empowerment programs, is “not merely an ID but the gateway to citizenship rights.”
Banda warned that when access to this crucial document is selectively restricted, the immediate consequence is systemic disenfranchisement of thousands of eligible voters in opposition strongholds.
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“In the instances where NRCs were issued, the integrity of the documents themselves was compromised, with officers reportedly resorting to handwritten details and numbers,” he said, noting that such documents were vulnerable to being declared invalid during the subsequent voter registration drive.
He contrasted this with reportedly smooth, well-resourced NRC exercises in strongholds of the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND).
“The contrast is stark, suggesting a two-tiered system of government service delivery where one group receives seamless access, and another is met with institutional obstruction,” Banda said.
He cited Chief Mabumba of the Ushi people in Mansa, who reported that officers in the first phase only managed to register 150 people across Katangwe and Mantumbusa villages, largely due to inadequate supply of materials.
“This pattern of selective failure perfectly aligns with the definition of voter suppression: any action that prevents or discourages eligible citizens from exercising their right to vote,” Banda said.
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