A former Health Minister in the erstwhile Mahama government, Dr. Edward Kofi Omane Boamah, reportedly questioned the Electoral Commission over revelations that four Biometric Verification kits in the custody of the Commission had been mysteriously stolen.
In a 35 point question, the former Minister demands to know among other things, how the EC was somehow infiltrated by thieves to carry away the stolen items, which the EC claims are not the actual BVR kits, but computers that were connected to the kits.
“Have the missing kits been found?; If the missing kits have been found, when (date & time) and where were they found? Who or how were the missing items discovered?; how many kits are missing, cannot be found or traced?; what are the serial numbers of the kits under discussion?; does the EC have the purchasing invoices together with serial numbers at time of purchase of the missing items?; did the EC have official recorded inventory of the missing items prior to the theft?” and “ Is there present inventory of such sensitive items to aid a comprehensive inquiry that can allay the fears of stakeholders?” were the first seven questions of the 34.
It woul;d be recalled that in March 2024, reports emerged that seven Biometric Verification Devices (BVDs) in the c ustody of the Electoral Commission had been stolen from the custody of the EC.
The EC would later claim that it is not seven BVDs that had been stolen, but five laptops from biometric Voter Registration devices (BVRs).
What is intriguing is that the EC is a security zone, and ordinarily should be protected than the average state institution.
Another noteworthy fact is that, the reported theft of equipment related to the EC’s biometric kits, is like a chilling replay of a similar development in the build up to the 2016 elections, when some ex-South African Police officers who had been smuggled into the country to train NPP party goons, were arrested with copies the Electoral Commission’s biometric voter equipment mannuals in their possession.
Following from that, the then ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) would go on to lose the election by a questionably wide margin of almost one million votes, a gap that the EC could not gazette the presidential elections in parliament for a long time.
The rest of Dr. Omane Boamah’s questions were as follows:
When (date & time using CCTV) did the EC become aware that the items were missing, did the EC hold an immediate/emergency formal meeting to discuss the missing items?; If yes: (a) who attended that meeting?; Are there minutes of that meeting?; was it resolved at that meeting to report to the police?
If it was reported to the police, what is the time lapse between the discovery of the theft and the report to the police?; Who in the EC made the report to the police?; Is there a formal extract of the report to the police?; What is the status of the report?; Is there a weekly/regular briefing on the status of the report?; Has the EC received any statements or reports from the persons with personal charge of the kits regarding the loss of the kits? Kindly provide us copies of the statements or reports, if any.
Did the police arrest the culprit(s)? Is or are the culprit(s) on bail? Is or are the culprit(s) still in Ghana?; When was the last time these kits were deployed for purposes of voter registration?; Where were the kits kept before they were deployed?; Which registration stations used the missing kits?; Who specifically was/were in charge of the kits when they were last deployed for registration?; Did the missing kits contain any data of voters?; and If yes, does the EC have backups for the data stored on the missing kitts, If yes, had the data already been transferred either manually or electronically to the National Voters Register for purposes of voting in the future?
What are the protocols for the storage of such devices at the headquarters of the EC?; Were these protocols adhered to in respect of the missing items?; Who has personal responsibility for safe custody of items?; The persons who had personal responsibility for the items, are/were they permanent or temporary staff of the EC?; If temporary staff, for how long or how many times have they worked for the EC? Regarding the Un-retrieved/lost/missing Biometric Verification Devices (BVD)
Many of the questions raised about the stolen components of the registration kits apply. Specifically, Ghanaians also need answers to the following questions:
“Have all un-retrieved/missing BVDs being returned to the EC headquarters?; What are the serial numbers of these BVDs?; Which polling stations were the BVDs deployed to?; What are the names of the persons who were in charge of the BVDs when the BVDs were last deployed to polling stations?; What are the protocols for the deployment of BVDs to polling stations?; Were these protocols adhered to in respect of the missing BVDs? And, Who has personal responsibility for the safe custody and return of BVDs deployed to polling stations?”