Less than three months after the disputed municipal elections in Nicaragua, the Urnas Abiertas citizen observatory pointed to confusion, secrecy and absence on the part of the Supreme Electoral Council (CSE) before the call for citizen verification.
The organization recalled that on July 27, the ruling Sandinista Front party called for a virtual verification day for August 13 and 14, between
8:00 am and 5:00 pm, however, to date the CSE has not issued an official election call or calendar.
Related news: Open Ballot Boxes denounces “silence and secrecy” on the part of the CSE ahead of the municipal elections
The citizen networks of the observatory confirmed that the confusion in these processes persists within the party, official and collaborationist structures, as well as among state workers.
“Until Friday afternoon —August 12—, some institutions reported having information that the activity would be carried out virtually, while in other municipalities there were public officials who reported having been trained to work as an electoral technician in this day,” said the observatory.
Despite the fact that there was already a date set for the verification, Open Ballot Boxes revealed that the political operators of the ruling party even threatened and harassed state workers to get them to participate in said activity, “However, as the days went by, the same party structures modified the call, indicating that it would take place virtually from August 18 to 31.”
It should be noted that some municipalities and departments reported the start of functions of the Departmental and Municipal Electoral Councils (CED and CEM), while in other localities it was indicated that they have information that they will start operating until the end of the month.
He also indicated that although the verification process is an activity that is traditionally included in the electoral calendar, and despite its importance, it is not regulated within the Electoral Law, “which allows the discretion of the CSE in its development.”
Last year, the agency registered 928 irregularities during the 2021 citizen verification, which were received from the 17 departments and autonomous regions of the country, and from 103 of the 153 municipalities.
Increases violence and repression
Another of the remarks made by the Observatory was about the expectation before the development of the citizen verification for the municipal elections occurs in the midst of the increase in political violence and repression by the regime, which continues to deprive more than 190 opponents of their freedom.
He stressed that during the last week the Ortega Police increased the persecution against the Catholic Church. “Since Friday, August 12, they militarized the surroundings of the Managua Cathedral and other Catholic temples at the national level and prohibited them from carrying out the processions scheduled for August 13 and 14 on the occasion of the Marian Congress and the pilgrimage of the image of the Virgin of Fatima, while keeping Monsignor Rolando Álvarez under siege in Matagalpa”, they denounced.
Related news: Open Ballot Boxes considers the possibility of “integrity and legitimate” municipal elections in Nicaragua null and void
They indicated that since the morning hours of this Saturday, agents of the National Police detained and searched buses and minibuses that circulate in the surroundings of the Managua Cathedral. Checkpoints were also reported in Masaya.
The next municipal elections have been described by the opposition as lacking in legality. The Ortega regime has only six parties, designated as collaborators, after “beheading” three political organizations and locking up presidential candidates. So far, no opposition group is talking about the elections.
