IEBC CEO Ezra Chiloba has defended the electoral body's decision to proceed with the procurement of election materials for the 2017 election before the completion of voters registration process and appointment of the new commissioners.
Chiloba has stated that delaying the process would be equivalent to planning to fail with the elections only eight months away.
This is after a section of ODM legislators stated that the early procurement of materials was a form of riging the next polls.
“The tendering process was above board and it followed all the due processes required by the Constitution,” said Chiloba
Chiloba said the move to proceed with the advertising and issuance of tenders for the supply of election materials was necessitated by the strict timeline that the commission is working under to ensure it delivers a credible election.