Liberia: Lapses in Biometric Voter Registration Frustrate Citizens

Melvin Tamba, a 48-year-old father of seven, had high hopes of finally registering to vote in the upcoming presidential and representative elections in Liberia. 

He arrived at the Mount Carmel Jehovah Institute in Red Light at 9 a.m., ready to complete his biometric voter registration (BVR), which would have allowed him to exercise his right to vote in the October 10 polls.

But after waiting in line for eight hours under the scorching sun, he was left frustrated and disappointed and unable to register due to technical difficulties that are now becoming associated with the ongoing biometric registration exercises. 

“This is so frustrating,” he said, shaking his head.  “I can’t believe I still haven't been able to register.”

Tamba’s frustration is shared by many Liberians who have encountered similar technical glitches during the ongoing voter registration process in the six counties. 

The biometric equipment being used by the National Elections Commission has been marred by regular technical faults, causing delays and leaving many hopeful registrants unable to complete their registration.

RELATED ARTICLE: Boakai Calls For Biometric Voter Registration Extension

One common technical issue is the lengthy amount of time it takes for the solar panels used by the electoral body to power the biometric machines. 

This often results in tedious delays, with registrants waiting for long hours under the hot sun. In most cases, when the machines finally come on, many have already left.  Another issue is the frequent shortage of biometric cards, which also leaves many potential registrants frustrated.

“If people get impatient and leave because the system breaks down and they don’t come back to register, we may not register enough eligible voters,” says Oscar Bloh, an expert on the Liberian electioneering process. 

Bloh, the Chair of the Election Coordinating Committee (ECC), which is the country's largest election monitoring group, has previously warned about similar problems arising from the lack of piloting of the equipment on a small scale, saying then that the electoral body's transition to a biometric system is not without risks as the system has its own pros and cons.  

This, he said, would pose a threat to the electoral body's ability to capture enough eligible voters, leaving many disenfranchised as a result of the equipment experiencing regular technical issues. 

According to Bloh, his group has observed that some voter registration centers are experiencing equipment malfunctions, specifically with their solar panels, causing a slowdown in daily activities.

In one instance, Bloh said, an election worker had to resort to using a generator provided by a visitor who had come to register.

These problems, however, are not something that the electoral body seems to be unaware of. The Chairperson of the National Elections Commission, Davidetta Browne Lansanah, in one of her press conferences on the issues a few weeks ago, blamed the technical glitches on the limited understanding of some of its temporary registration staff.

“They are facing challenges with how to set up, how to activate, and how to troubleshoot the new system,” Lansanah said at the time. “The introduction of new technology comes with limited knowledge and, as such, glitches do occur. Such challenges are not peculiar to Liberia.”

However, she said that challenges were being addressed with the deployment of a mobile technical team to all the voter registration centers across the six counties to address each concern that may arise. 

But the problem still exists, leaving many eligible voters frustrated.  The Commission decided to use biometric equipment for its voter registration process to streamline the electoral process and reduce the potential for double registration and other forms of voter fraud. 

This comes after the Commission has come under pressure to dash its optical manual registration (OMR) system. The OMR system, for many, does not improve the accountability and transparency of electoral processes and is usually tainted by controversy and mistrust. 

The biometric, which is also not a silver bullet, according to many experts, was seen as a safe route to produce a credible voter roll void of double registration. A pilot and test of the equipment on a smaller scale were never carried out, despite calls to do so to identify any potential issues that would arise before the nationwide ongoing voter registration, which ends on April 9, in six counties. 

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“With these challenges, the number of people that are supposed to register will not because of the timing. So this is a bit of a problem,” said Eddie Jarwolo, Executive Director, of Naymote Partners for Democratic Development. “People cannot be disenfranchised because NEC doesn’t have the capacity to do its work.”

“It is frustrating that people are turning out to register, and they have been denied because of the capacity of NEC. So I hope the government can find a way out. The Legislature and the Executive [branches] are to be blamed; they are under obligation to sponsor the election. WE KNEW THAT 2023 THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN ELECTION so in 2019 we should have started saving special allocation for election.”

When the voter registration is not credible the election itself will not be credible, he said.

Jarwolo noted that the commission suffered a huge budget cut that is now affecting its function, saying the cut in the budget tampered with most of the NEC’s work. 

The commission requested US$91 million to conduct the election, but the amount was finally sliced to US$33 million. The Commission however is struggling to access its budgetary allocation for the October 10th elections, something U.S Ambassador Michael McCarthy warned in March could potentially undermine the election process. 

Even prior to the Ambassador’s warning, many others, including leaders in the political opposition and civil society actors have raised concerns that this situation could negatively impact the commission's ability to conduct a fair and credible election.

“If the necessary funds requested for are not provided to the NEC, it has the propensity to undermine the conduct of the October 10 elections,” McCarthy warned. “The commission needs the necessary resources to effectively prepare for and implement all aspects of the electoral process.” 

Meanwhile, Jarwolo’s frustration about people being able to register as a result of equipment problems is evident in the sentiments shared by Esther Massaley, a resident of the GSA Road community, who has vowed not to participate in the registration process due to what she perceives as the process’s “ineffectiveness and disorganized nature.”

Massaley spent over ten hours at a registration center in her community attempting to register but was unsuccessful. She said she had hoped that the process would be simple, but her hopes were dashed when a voter registration worker informed her that the equipment could not be powered on due to the inadequacy of the solar panel provided.

“It is very unfortunate that people will leave their busy schedules and come here and they are treated this way. I can’t see myself coming here again. With this thing, I see here plenty of people will not register,”  Massaley noted as she walked away. 

“I am going home. It’s not forced to get a card or vote. I will not kill myself,” she said.

Massaley had gone to the voter registration center with a few friends who had been here before but could not get a voter registration card as a result of a similar technical glitch. 

She is of the belief that they, like her, may not return, due to the ineffectiveness of the process. 

Meanwhile, the ongoing biometric voter registration exercise is currently underway in six counties, namely Bomi, Gbarpolu, Grand Bassa, Grand Cape Mount, Margibi, and Montserrado. 

However, concerns have been raised regarding the upcoming second phase, particularly in the hard-to-reach counties.

Phase two of the exercise is scheduled to cover nine counties, including Bong, Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Lofa, Maryland, Nimba, Rivercess, River Gee, and Sinoe. 

Unfortunately, half of these counties present logistical challenges, and poor broadband access is likely to exacerbate the issue. This has caused anxiety among citizens who fear that the same problems encountered during the first phase may recur in the second phase.

The Unity Party has meanwhile called on the Commission to consider extending the registration process in the first six counties. 

The party’s political leader, Joseph Boakai, in a statement on the issue, noted that the extension could help make up for the delays and technical problems that have led to many not being able to register. 

The NEC's failure to extend the time, he said, will be an act of deliberately disenfranchising Liberian citizens from participating in the elections.