Man sentenced to 3 years in prison for selling voter certificate
Tiyanjane Frank, 21 said he regrets to have sold his voter registration certificate after Balaka First Grade Magistrate court on Monday convicted convicted him snd sentenced to three years Imprisonment with Hard Labour.
The offence of selling voter registration certificateis contrary to Section 98 (1) (i) of the elections law.
The court heard that Frank went to Utale Trading Centre offering people to buy his voter registration certificate.
He was selling it at a price of K20 000and approached one businessman who asked him to wait so that he communicates with his friend who is engaged in similar business.
The businessman then alerted the Community Police about the plan.
State prosecutor Richard Kandeya told the Court that: “When the Police asked him, he accepted that indeed he was selling his certificate which led to his arrest”.
He later pleaded with the Court to hand the convict with a stiffer punishment to act as a lesson to other would-be offenders in electoral crime related cases especially this period of approaching the 2019 Tripartite Elections. .
In his ruling, First grade Magistrate Felix Mandala complied with Kandeya’s plea and described the suspect’s act as very unfortunate and uncalled for.
He therefore sentenced him to 3 years’ imprisonment with hard labour.
The convict hails Chiwere Village, T/A Mlumbe in Zomba District.
Mukanafusa cholinga cheni chimene amafuna gulisila voter registration. Chilango mukapusa chogwil ukayidi woyendela,chifukwa ni munthu woyamba kupalamula mulandu umene uwu muziko mwathu
Adakapatsidwa miyezi yochepa, kuti adzakwanitse kukavota chonde.
Why is this treated as an open and close case? Who is going about buying voter registration certificates in the area?