Christian Churches Monitoring Group (CCMG) has noted with concern reports that citizens in Northern and Muchinga Provinces risk being disenfranchised in next year’s General Elections due to being issued with defective National Registration Cards (NRCs). CCMG has long called for increased transparency in the issuance of NRCs to enhance public confidence in the process and to promote greater accessibility and accountability for citizens and duty-bearers.
Reports by the Mast Newspaper dated 26 August 2025, indicated that citizens in Northern and Muchinga provinces are unable to access essential services using their newly acquired NRCs as they are being rejected as invalid. The newspaper further reports that Chief Misengo of Mporokoso District in Northern Province has raised alarm after nearly 200 of his subjects presented NRCs with errors, including handwritten details completed with a pen instead of being properly printed.
CCMG has followed up on these reports. An observer in Mporokoso has confirmed receiving reports on 23rd August 2025 that the Department of National Registration, Passport and Citizenship (DNRPC) officers were issuing defective NRCs in Chief Misengo’s area. The observer reported that DNRPC officers claimed they had run out of ink to print names properly, leading to incomplete details being filled in by hand using black pens. This problem has also been reported in Mpika District, particularly in Mutamba and Nachikufu wards, where residents faced the same issue.
CCMG is deeply concerned that the issuance of defective NRCs would disenfranchise citizens, as a valid NRC is a requirement not only to vote, but to also register as a voter, as provided under Section 8(1) of the Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016. CCMG and other observer missions have recommended that the Electoral Commission of Zambia and the DNRPC coordinate their mobile issuance exercises to ensure that no citizens are disenfranchised and to minimise costs.
CCMG urges the Ministry of Home Affairs and Internal Security and DNRPC to urgently investigate these reports, withdraw all defective NRCs, and issue valid replacements to safeguard citizens’ rights to vote as well as register as voters particularly before the commencement of the Mass Voter Registration exercise by the Electoral Commission of Zambia scheduled on 13 October 2025.
