Mundubile Demands Answers Over Gen 24 Forms, Alleges Intelligence Officers Involved in Collecting Them

NRPUP presidential candidate Brian Mundubile has issued a detailed new statement raising five separate concerns about the handling of Gen 24 presidential result forms during the count, alleging that some forms were collected from districts before verification was complete, that intelligence officers may have been involved in collecting them from local government officials, and that officials in Southern and North-Western provinces were pressured to alter figures on the forms. Mundubile was careful to frame each point as an allegation requiring independent investigation rather than an established fact.

"We therefore call upon the Electoral Commission of Zambia, election officials, law enforcement agencies, election observers, and all stakeholders to act immediately to preserve the integrity of the electoral record and establish the truth," Mundubile said.

EARLY COLLECTION OF FORMS

Mundubile said his campaign received information that, on the morning of 14 August, instructions were allegedly issued for Gen 24 forms to be collected from districts before the ordinary verification process had been completed, in what he said was a departure from established procedure requiring the forms to remain in a proper chain of custody and be transmitted only by duly authorised returning officers after verification. "We therefore demand a clear explanation from ECZ as to who authorised the collection of these forms, under what provision of law or procedure, for what purpose, and into whose custody were they to be delivered," he said, describing the preservation of original Gen 24 forms as "fundamental to transparency, verification, and the ability of candidates and stakeholders to challenge discrepancies through lawful processes."

THE RESULTS SUSPENSION

Mundubile linked his concerns over the forms to the ECZ's decision, which MUVI reported on at the time, to suspend the announcement of results for 24 hours on 14 August, a period in which questions were already being raised about the movement of election documentation. "The public deserves to know what happened during that period, which officials had access to election material, whether any Gen 24 forms were moved, and whether alterations were made to any electoral records," he said.

ALLEGED INTELLIGENCE OFFICER INVOLVEMENT

Mundubile's most serious claim was that, after some electoral officials allegedly resisted the earlier instructions, fresh instructions were communicated through provincial local government structures directing district intelligence officers to collect Gen 24 forms from town clerks and council secretaries. "If accurate, this represents an extraordinarily serious development," he said, calling on the ECZ to clarify whether any intelligence, military, police or other security personnel were authorised to collect, transport, possess or otherwise handle Gen 24 forms, and if so, under what legal authority. "Election materials must be protected from unauthorised interference, regardless of which candidate stands to benefit," he said.

ALLEGATIONS IN SOUTHERN AND NORTH-WESTERN PROVINCES

Mundubile said his campaign had received specific allegations that officials in Southern Province were pressured, including through instructions allegedly relayed via local government officials, to modify figures on Gen 24 forms, and that similar allegations had been raised in North-Western Province. He said named public officials in both provinces had been "supplied" in connection with the allegations, without naming them in this statement. "We deliberately emphasise that these remain allegations requiring urgent independent investigation," he said. "These individuals are entitled to respond, and no conclusion of criminal responsibility should be reached without evidence and due process. Nevertheless, the allegations are sufficiently serious that they cannot simply be ignored."

He called for the immediate preservation of original Gen 24 forms from every polling station, constituency and district, along with all electronic records, transmission logs and tally sheets, and said any discrepancies between original or independently distributed stakeholder copies and documents later presented for national review must be independently investigated and remedied.

MUVI has not independently verified any of the specific allegations in Mundubile's statement, including the claims involving intelligence officers or officials in Southern and North-Western provinces. This statement follows a series of other claims and counter-claims MUVI has reported on since the 13 August election, including the government's own account of the Kabulonga security operation and competing accounts of events during the results suspension.