as candidates and parties can take the opportunity to perform due diligence and ensure that the correct information is being transmitted right from the polling-station to the National Command Centre. These requirements are mandatory as depicted by the use of the word ‘shall’ in all instances where the electoral officers are required to provide the returns. This is an important step for transparency. • There is a point worth noting that the explanatory note to the Bill is misleading in that it suggests that such returns are to be provided upon request yet the provisions have no mention of this requirement for a request by candidates of political parties. The provisions (all three paragraphs of Section 65A) simply require the presiding officer, the constituency elections officer and the Chief Elections Officer to provide the returns to the political parties and candidates ‘forthwith’. This should be clarified to reflect the correct position of the law. • This provision must be read alongside the other provisions (below) requiring the posting of polling and constituency returns after the counting of votes at each level of the collation and counting process. Verification & Collation of Results • Section 65 of the Act which deals with the verification and collation of polling station returns at constituency level is also amended by Clause 21 of the Bill. It will require constituency election officers to complete constituency returns as soon as they have verified and collated the returns from polling stations, and forward their returns for transmission through the appropriate constituency and provincial centres to the National Command Centre (in accordance with Section 37C (4) of the Act). Posting Returns Outside Polling Station • Significantly, they will also have to provide candidates and polling agents with copies of their returns, and post copies of them outside their constituency centres. The constituency return must, in addition to separately recording the results of the counting of the postal and ordinary 29