The Electoral Commission (EC) has assured the public that the integrity of the 2024 general elections remains secure despite the recent theft of a biometric verification device (BVD). This reassurance follows the arrest of a man in Nsawam on Friday, August 23, for possessing a BVD.
In a statement issued on Saturday, August 24, the EC’s Deputy Chairman of Operations, Samuel Tettey, clarified that BVDs are solely used for voter verification and lack the capabilities to compromise an election’s integrity.
The EC emphasized that even though a BVD requires an activation code and other security measures to function fully, the Commission is conducting an internal investigation and will cooperate with the police to resolve the matter.
The full statement from the EC highlighted that this incident is being taken seriously, but reiterated that a stolen BVD cannot be used to tamper with the electoral process. The Commission reassured the public that BVDs are just off-the-shelf devices, which without the necessary technical and security protocols, are incapable of influencing the outcome of an election.
The EC further detailed the stringent processes involved in preparing a BVD for an election. These devices are configured specifically for each election cycle, and the voter verification data is highly secured and encrypted, ensuring that only authorized BVDs can be used on Election Day.
Additionally, the Commission stated that BVDs are only utilized for verifying voters and not for casting votes. The EC also mentioned that political party agents monitor the deployment of these devices, recording their serial numbers, which are then documented on official election records, providing further verification of their legitimate use.
The EC has urged the police to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the stolen BVD and affirmed its readiness to collaborate with law enforcement to ensure the situation is fully resolved.