Only 800 out of 2,998 biometric machines needed to carry out effective voter registration by the National Electoral Commission (NEC) across the country have arrived and ready to be used. This has however caused worry for some political parties who fear that the voter registration process might be seriously compromised.
The Spokesperson of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Chernor Alpha Bah yesterday expressed worries about the inadequacy of Biometric Registration machines that will be used by NEC for the upcoming voter registration.
He said the Biometric Voter Registration system is good but “we at NDA doubt the adequacy of logistics and the capability of NEC staff to carry out voter registration.”
“We’ve observed that NEC does not have the required machines needed for a comprehensive and holistic voter registration (process) across the country in an efficient manner.”
Bah said reports of insufficient biometric registration machines are worrisome issues for the entire voter registration exercise,
He cited the two weeks interval use of the machines per center saying it will create difficulty and flaws for many as most eligible voters will be left out during the exercise.
The NDA spokesperson stated that even the matching machine that verifies the registration of voters have not yet arrived in the country.
He demanded that, NEC should make public the specifications of the machines for verification and scrutiny.
Bah also said that considering the insufficiency of the biometric machines the registration dates should be extended to enable all eligible voters to register.
He cautioned NEC that if proper mechanisms are not in place they will likely face a fraudulent voter registration exercise, considering the poor networking of the machines and the subsequent delays in the issuance of voters Identity Cards.
He suggested that the Biometric Machines should be made available at all registration centers and that voters Identity Cards should also be instantly distributed just after registration to avoid setbacks.
The Chief of Outreach and External Relations at NEC Albert Massaquoi admitted that NEC needs 2,998 biometric machines but only 800 machines are available.
He added that the initial budget presented by NEC was Le80b (Eighty billion Leones) and the government is expected to provide 54 percent of the budget while donors are to provide 46 percent in phases. He assured the public of ensuring a successful voter registration exercise across the country.
By Saidu Bah
ADVERTISEMENT