Action to ensure reception of enumeration forms

Chaminda PERERA

The Elections Department stressed that the people living in all districts in the country except Colombo, can complain to the Grama Niladhari if they do not receive the enumeration form for the revision of Electoral Register 2011 before July 15.

The department said that the voters in the Colombo district who do not receive the enumeration form before July 15 can complain to the Colombo District Election Office.

According to Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya, the Grama Niladharis should visit each household at least twice to collect enumeration forms.

He said the department has adopted new procedure to mention the names of the persons who have been registered in the previous voters registers with their ID numbers for easy perusal of electors.This procedure was implemented in over 15 districts and several polling divisions in the Colombo, Galle, Kandy, Puttalam, Ratnapura and Kurunegala districts. The elections commissioner added that this procedure will be extended to all polling divisions of the country in the years to come and will help the elector understand the manner in which his name, National Identity Card number and other details are shown in the electoral register.

He said the Grama Niladharis can not collect the enumeration form from households alone and department representatives will also be deployed to collect these forms.

In some GN divisions, the number of registered voters exceed 15,000 and the Grama Niladhari cannot handle this task alone, he said.

He added that department officials and the Grama Niladharis face difficulty in collecting forms from apartment houses in the Colombo district .

"Gates of some houses in the Colombo city are closed and officials face difficulties in distribution and collection of enumeration forms," the elections commissioner added.