BY JENNIFER KUSAPA
THE Chief Electoral Officer Mose Saitala has warned people to abide by the Solomon Islands Electoral Commission regulations.
Responding to questions asked yesterday after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force, he said that when people want to transfer from anther constituency to another they must be sure to put accurate and true information of where they reside.
He said penalties of false and misleading information is $50,000 and five years imprisonment or both can apply.
He said when you want to register for next year’s election and wanted to change registration make sure you fill up the form B and put all right information about you.
He made an example yesterday that if you are registering in West Honiara and you fill up the form B where it says place of residence and you put West Honiara, but actually you are from weather coast and residing there.
“You are making false and misleading information by way of this form and that is an offence, and its penalties are very heavy and I want to warn people not to do such,” Mr Saitala said.
He said if the SIEC finds you out tough penalties will be imposed.
Because comes the objection and omission period and your names are being objected to and eventually if you are guilty that you cannot defend your-self that you have the right to vote there in another constituency and you cannot defend that you are actually from there then you breached the law under the provision of false and misleading information.
Therefore Mr Saitala has warned people to must register in their constituency of residence and not to transfer with providing false and misleading information.
He adds that if comes nomination period and nomination filed and complains raised that a certain candidate has lured people to vote for him and if there are evidence proving that the said candidate is doing such then it is breached of the SIEC ACT.
There is an offence of undue influence trying to influence someone to vote in one way or another to benefit you but that Act will apply when a person is filing his nomination to be candidate.
