Suspects in missing BVR kits handed over to police
The Electoral Commission (EC) has said it has handed over individuals suspected to be involved in the alleged theft of the missing five laptops, which were part of the Biometric Voters Registration (BVR), kits to the police.
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The Director of Electoral Services at the EC, Dr Serebour Quaicoe, who made this known during an interview, said the police commenced investigations into the alleged theft of the five laptops about a month ago.
This step, he said, was to ensure that those suspects, if found culpable, would be dealt with for stealing state property. “That is why we said that we have lost BVRs, and these are the suspects. So investigate and let them go through the legal regime; whatever has to be done, should be done.
“So they have been interdicted and they are now going through the security investigation. I am told that they will be arraigned before the court soon. If they are found guilty, the law should deal with them,” he said.
The Director of Electoral Services clarified that there was no cause for alarm about the missing BVR kits since they have not been activated.
Background
On March 19, 2024, the Minority in Parliament called for urgent action from the police following the alleged disappearance of seven biometric devices, expressing concern about potential ramifications for the upcoming December election.
However, at a press conference on March 20, 2024, the EC denied the missing Biometric Verification Devices from its stores and said it was rather five laptops, which were part of the BVR kits that were stolen.
A Deputy Chairperson of the EC in charge of Operations, Samuel Tettey, who addressed the press conference, said that during a recent routine servicing of its BVR kits, the EC discovered the theft of five laptops from the kits.
He explained that the BVR Kits, which comprise a laptop, camera, scanner and printer, were entirely separate from the Commission’s Registration Data Systems and were incapable of manipulating election outcomes as suggested.
Mr Tettey said those kits, though crucial for voter registration, required specific activation to function accordingly. “Without such activation, they serve no purpose beyond their individual components as a laptop, camera, scanner or printer. What this means is that they are of no value beyond what they were manufactured to be.
“Similarly, the stolen laptops cannot be utilised for voter verification or registration. It remains just a laptop. As such, they cannot be used to compromise our systems and undermine the credibility of the upcoming elections in December 2024,” he said.