EC Allays Fears About Stolen Devices

The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana has allayed fears about the repercussions some missing devices from its storeroom would pose on the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

Clarifying the development, the Commission said five laptops from the Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits had gone missing, discrediting earlier reports that seven BVRs were missing.

At a press conference on March 20, 2024, the Deputy Chairperson of the Commission, Mr Bossman Asare, said the missing devices would have no impact on the election.

“They do not contain any information on any voter neither do they contain any critical information so we want everyone to know that we are fully ready for the elections ahead. So there are no risks as far as the electoral commission is concerned,”

He noted that even if a BVR or BVD had been stolen, it still would have been rendered inconsequential since it would have malfunctioned.

“You can still not be able to register applicants. The reason is that before registration will take place we need to activate that particular equipment and connect it to our system.”

He furthered, “The BVDs are used for verification during elections. The BVRs are used for registration. The BVRs come in the form of a box we call the BVR kit. In that box, you are going to have a laptop, a scanner, a camera and you are going to have a printer, and other devices which constitute the kit.

“So each of the individual equipment that make up the kit, on their own do not have any bearing on our activities neither do they have any bearing on our registration exercise. It is any when we put them together. Even when we put them together we must activate them and connect them to our system before they can be used for registration purposes.

“When it comes to the BVDs we only use them when you are going to vote and we want to establish that you are the one you claim to be. So if even a BVD or BVR is missing they have no impact on our elections because on their own unless they are activated and connected to our system, on their own they cannot do anything.”

Background
The Minority in Parliament on Tuesday alleged seven biometric devices of the EC had been stolen.

Speaking to the press, the Minority Leader, Cassiel Atto Forson said the EC had confirmed the news as true following a scheduled meeting with some legislators.

“Seven machines the EC uses to register Ghanaians into the electoral roll and also at the same time uses to verify us before you vote are missing. Seven of them are missing.

Expressing concern about the development, he called on the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Ghana Police Service to publish the report of their investigations on the theft.

“I am concerned and worried because those devices in the hands of unknown persons may compromise the future elections Ghana will have. Who knows whether this is in the hands of a political party and who knows what that political party is doing with it.”