Ambassador Alie Bangura, Campaign Chairman for the main opposition Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) has raised concerns over the number of days that the biometric registration exercise will take and the availability of registration materials at the centres.
In an interview, the lead SLPP Campaigner notes, “the total number of days for registration is 63. We hope it will be enough because it is an issue we have raised with the NEC, since we are going to have registrations done at designated centres within the Wards and kits are expected to be in a particular centre for not more than 15 days following which it would be moved to another centre. We only hope that the arrangement would ensure that all our people who are eligible voters are able to register.”
Asked whether as a party they are satisfied with the logistical arrangements of the NEC, the SLPP Campaign Manager said, “we believe that the logistics are inadequate because in the first place, we would have preferred a situation where in all centres are equipped with a biometric kit.”
This he went on, “would have meant providing each centre with two thousand nine hundred and ninety eight (2,998) kits for the entire country. But NEC is constrained when it comes to resources and therefore is saying that they are in the position of providing only 800 kits. So when it comes to logistics, we are saying definitely we are not satisfied. So if that is what they can provide because of their own constraints we can make do with it.”
On the party’s position concerning the biometric system of registration, Ambassador Bangura stated, “we expected the new biometric system to be an improvement to the manual system that we have before. The only thing is that we would wish a complete biometric system that is not limited to just registration but also for verification and voting. But because of the NEC’s resource constraints, we cannot do the complete biometric election process; this one is only limited to registration.”
On the issue of trust, he said, “this is the first time we are doing biometric registration. It is not a matter of trust what we want to do as a party is to institute the necessary controls, safe guards, checks and balances to ensure fairness of the process that should reflect at the end of the day a credible register.”
On the question of sensitization on the registration process, Ambassador Bangura maintained that as a party they have done a lot in terms of sensitization of people especially their supporters and sympathisers. According to him, they used seminars, training workshops on the registration process and the new biometric system to be used. “We are still on it and we will continue sensitization until the 21st March this year. It has been the job of our various executive committees and the election management committee in every part of the country,” the Campaign Chairman stated.
On the issue of violence he noted that the SLPP frowns at all forms of violence. He maintained, “We don’t think there is need for violence when it comes to registration. Our only concern is for our people not to be disenfranchised for the 2012 elections. It would be in our interest if the whole registration process ends up peacefully. Our satisfaction would only be guaranteed if our people are fully registered which would allow them to vote for us in the coming elections.”
By Betty Milton
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