By Ennety Munshya,
The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has confirmed that it received a formal complaint during the Kasama mayoral by-election alleging that a political party was collecting voters’ cards in exchange for money, a practice the Commission says is illegal under Zambian law.
In a written response dated 25 February 2026, the Commission said the Kasama District Conflict Management Committee received a complaint from the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) on 26 January 2026, alleging that the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) was giving money to voters and collecting their voter cards in return.
According to ECZ, the matter was heard on 27 January 2026. However, the Commission said the complainant did not provide evidence to support the allegations, and the matter was referred to law enforcement agencies, specifically the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and Zambia Police, because the allegations were criminal in nature.
“It was resolved that since FDD did not avail any evidence to support the complaint the matter should be reported to the Law Enforcement Agencies (Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)and Zambia Police (ZP)) for further investigation and action and in view of the fact that the allegations where criminal in nature,” he Commission said in a statement signed by Brown Kasaro, Chief Electoral Officer.
Collection of Voter Cards Is an Offence – ECZ
In its response, ECZ made it clear that collecting or asking for another person’s voter’s card details is illegal.
“It is illegal to collect a voters Card during campaigns or any other time even when elections are not eminent,” the Commission stated, adding that being in possession of another person’s voter card or asking someone to disclose details from the card constitutes an offence under Regulations 38 and 39 of the Voter Registration Regulations.
This clarification directly relates to findings in the MakanDay Centre for Investigative Journalism’s earlier report, which documented testimonies from residents in Kasama who alleged that voter and National Registration Cards (NRCs) were collected in exchange for K50 payments ahead of polling day.
In that investigation, some residents claimed the documents were later returned after polling day, meaning they did not cast their ballots.
ECZ: Commission Not an Investigative Body
The Commission further clarified that while it can reprimand political parties, revoke accreditations, or refer matters to law enforcement agencies, it is not an investigative body when it comes to criminal offences.
Where allegations involve criminal conduct, ECZ says it refers matters to relevant enforcement agencies for investigation and further action.
“Functus Officio” After Declaration of Results
ECZ also stated that once election results have been declared, the Commission becomes functus officio, meaning it no longer has the authority to handle alleged malpractice. Any aggrieved party must instead petition the courts under Section 97 of the Electoral Process Act.
“Thus once results are declared, the aggrieved party may petition the relevant Court or Tribunal to deal with the electoral malpractice,” the Commission said.
Linking Back to the Kasama Investigation
In its original investigation titled “Zambia’s ‘Peaceful’ By-Election: Fear, Violence and the Meaning of Silence in Kasama.” MakanDay documented numerous allegations, including inducements, claims of voter card collection, testimonies suggesting intimidation during the campaign period and concerns about weak enforcement of electoral standards.
At the time of publication, ruling party officials had rejected allegations of misconduct, stating that party agents were merely collecting information for comparison with the voter register.
The ECZ’s written clarification now establishes two important facts, a formal complaint was indeed received and heard and collecting voter cards or asking for their details is illegal under electoral regulations.
What remains unclear is whether law enforcement agencies have since opened investigations, and whether any evidence has been substantiated.
Disclaimer: The photo used is an illustrative image based on an official ECZ statement and is not the original document.
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