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Protests hamper some voting stations in EC

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Nine voting stations in the Eastern Cape were not able to open by 9 AM due to community protests in parts of the province.

The Independent Electoral Commission says 32 stations also opened later than scheduled.

Provincial electoral officer, Kayakazi Magudumana, said the affected districts are in the Alfred Nzo, Chris Hani and OR Tambo Districts.

She said community members also dug trenches in roads in the Alfred Nzo District where five voting stations are affected by the protests and "as a result staff were unable to proceed to the voting stations."

Magudumana said SAPS are assisting in these matters which she said was driven by community issues.

Community protests are hampering voting in the Keiskammahoek area of the Eastern Cape.

Provincial electoral officer, Kayakazi Magudumana, says residents padlocked a voting station which had to be forced open.

She said while the IEC staff are inside the voting station, the road outside the facility is being blocked by a protest related to a land claim.

Meanwhile, she said she was concerned about voting at Walter Sisulu University in Mthatha which saw student protests on Monday, even though she said she was informed that the issues there had been resolved.

"We are worried about it because the registration figures for Walter Sisulu University are 2735, with most of those registrations being students," Magudumana said.

She said she had received confirmation from the Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane that the WSU issues were resolved.

Police later said all the affected stations were operating.