IMANI Africa asks EC more questions over 10 obsolete BVDs

IMANI Africa has responded to the Electoral Commission’s claims that the 10 BVDs retrieved from a recycling facility in Madina were obsolete. The Electoral Commission said the devices reached their end life and could not be refurbished so they were rightfully discarded.

However, IMANI Africa thinks there are more questions to be answered by the Commission. It asked the Electoral Commission to reveal the identities of the auctioneers and their qualifications. IMANI Africa also requested to know if the auctioneers have authorization to auction.

“The EC claims that the 10 BVDs were auctioned and subsequently ended up in a recycling plant. Who conducted the auction? Were they officially licensed auctioneers authorized by the Auctioneers Registration Board?”

Apart from the identities of the auctioneers, IMANI Africa also demanded the names of the successful bidders. It enquired if the auctioning was advertised and what interests the bidders had in acquiring 10 obsolete biometric devices made for electoral purposes.

“Who were the successful bidders, and how was the auction advertised? Why would anyone be interested in purchasing 10 used biometric devices allegedly designed specifically for electoral purposes, especially when the EC has procured thousands of newer devices in recent years?”

Interestingly, IMANI’s questions do not end there. The policy think tank asked why a commercial recycling plant is involved and who authorized them to recycle the devices even though they cannot handle secure data.

“Why would a commercial recycling plant be interested in acquiring only 10 devices? Who sanctioned the recycling of these devices in a facility lacking adequate secure data handling capabilities?”