Weekly Statement
• The Chairman of the Board of Commissioners directs the field follow-up of the electoral offices.
• Vice-Chairman of the Board of Commissioners follows up the rates of biometric registration.
• The Chief executive officer chaired a meeting of the Operations Committee with the (UNAMI) mission and the (IFES) Foundation.
• The Chief executive officer continues field follow up on work.
• IHEC:- voters Born in 2005, are on the list of biometric registration.
• IHEC is working to delete the deceased from its electoral register.
Weekly Statement
The Chairman and members of the Board of Commissioners of the Independent High Electoral Commission IHEC held their third regular session on Sunday the 22nd of January 2023; To discuss variety of topics on the agenda, the most important of which is the ratification of the fourth quarterly report concerning technical, administrative and legal activities and tasks that were carried out by IHEC for the period from the (1st October to the 31st December, 2022), under Article (10) of Commission’s Law No. (31) of 2019, therefore, the board of commissioners is keening that the Iraqi council of representatives should be informed of the Workflow in the corridors of the Commission, as the oversight authority.
In the context of follow-up, committees were formed under a ministerial order issued by the Chairman of the board of Commissioners, (Judge Jalil Adnan Khalaf), the committees are consisting of members of the board of Commissioners, the Chief executive officer (CEO), Directors Generals, and managers of departments; to made field visits the electoral offices in the governorates (GEOs) and their formations; for the purpose of Workflow, and evaluating the work technically and administratively, and how they are committed to instructions issued by the National Office, as well as following up the Completion rates at the processes of biometric registration and distribution of voter cards.
In a related matter, the Chief executive officer (CEO), Judge (Abbas Al-Fatlawi), began his work-field’s follow-up in GEOs of (Baghdad / Karkh), Najaf, Al-Qadisiyah, and in the Rehabilitation and Maintenance Center, by holding a meeting with the managers and chief of units, in the presence of the Director of the Administrative and Financial Department; To discuss the set work-plan of this year, and providing the necessary logistical needs for that.
In a continuous work follow-up of voter registration centers, the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Commissioners, Judge Omar Ahmed Muhammad, chaired an online meeting with the directors of the registration centers of the first constituency of Anbar Governorate, in the presence of the financial and administrative assistant of the CEO, Mr. (Ali Saleh Jaafar); to pursue their achievements in the success of the biometric registration project and the distribution of the biometric voter’s card, in addition to discussing the coordination mechanism with the mayors and ration card agents in the governorate, aiming to raise the ratio of biometric voter’s card distribution and voters registration, stressing the need to invite voters who hold the short-term card to update their biometric data to ensure their rights in the future elections.
In order to ensure the transparency and integrity of the elections, the judge ( Chief executive officer (CEO) , presided over the meeting of the operational committee, in the presence of MR. (Muhannad Fadel Abbas) CEO assistant of technical affairs, technician members of the committee, the United Nations Assistance Team (UNAMI), and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES); To discuss the mechanism for making improvements to the databases that would contribute to the implementation of Article (38)/second, of (Election Law) No. (9) of 2020 regarding the publication of election results. Besides, these improvements will facilitate the mechanism of dealing with electoral complaints and appeals.
In order to preserve the constitutional rights of voters born in 2005, the Electoral Commission started registering them biometrically, in (1079) registration centers spread throughout Iraq, as it continues the process of registering the previously unregistered voters. It continues its electronic publications via IHEC social media websites and civil media outlets in all governorates , in which it exhibits its procedures regarding biometric registration process and inviting previously registered voters to receive their electoral biometric cards via a number of social media and various local media in the governorates, as the biometric registration project resulted in the registration of (557,231) voters, including (135,909) voters born in 2004, which amounts to about (68%). While registration centers and mobile teams distributed (718,415) biometric cards, amounts to about (89%), classified as (160,237) cards for general voting, and (510,204) cards for private voting concerning the security services and armed forces. As for the IDPs, (47,974) cards were distributed for them; in the presence of local observers and agents of political parties.
The Communication Center Unit in the National Office is continuing to answer voters’ inquiries through the toll-free number (5667).
The interested in the electoral issues, they can view the (cumulative operational situation), via visiting the official website of IHEC: https://ihec.iq/biometric-registration /.
The Commission seeks to consolidate the data of the voter register, by coordinating the work and communicate with government institutions, including the ministries of: Trade, Health, and Immigration and Displaced Persons; as IHEC received the data of diseased persons from the ministry of health, to work on matching and auditing them with the data received from the ministry of trade, in order to remove them from the voter register. in addition to coordinate with the Ministries of Defense and Interior; For the purpose of urging their military personnel to review the registration center near their place of residence; to receive their biometric cards drawn on polling day, and to provide IHEC with the names of its military personnel who still in active duty, and those who have converted to civil service; For the purpose of transferring their biometric data from the private register to the public register and vice versa, in addition to military associates who were referred to retirement.
In terms of communicating with stakeholders, the GEOs continues holding the training workshops and educational seminars in various state institutions and directorates, and civil society organizations, in addition to participate in training students to practice their electoral right to choose who represents them, by conducting a simulation of an electoral process entitled (Parliamentary elections for students) simulate the voting process in accordance with the procedures of IHEC in the governorate schools, as the Commission provided logistical materials such as (the ballot box and voting booths), in addition to the continuation of the (election lesson) project by agreeing with HIGH school administrations to allocate a specific time of the school day, in which they will discuss topics about the electoral culture, especially legally qualified students who will reach the legal age that qualifies them to participate in the elections.
The spokesperson
29/1/2023