MPs Question Delay on Procurement of Voters Biometric Machine

A section of Members of Parliament (MP) have come out to express concerns over delay by the Electoral Commission to procure the E-verification voter system as a tool to curb the malpractices and multiple voting ahead of 2021 general elections.

While at the NRM party headquarters on Monday, President Museveni directed the electoral commission to first track the procurement of the new biometric machines to necessitate the digital verification of voters using their biometric data or finger prints ahead of the 2021 general elections as one of the to curb electoral malpractices.

Budadili West MP who is also the FDC secretary General Nandala Mafabi noted that the call for using biometric machines is long overdue but all political parties must be brought on board to decide on which technology to use.

Mafabi said that the technology used must be verifiable, traceable, accountable and can be audited.

The FDC Secretary General noted that “The Electoral Commission needs to consult all stakeholders involved so that they can agree on the type of technology to be used.”

Rujumbura County MP Fred Tumuheirwe-Turyamuhweza questioned the criteria which president Museveni is planning to use in procuring the biometric machines noting that government is seemingly late since elections are around the corner.

According to Justice Simon Byabakama, the chairperson of the Electoral Commission has since said that the commission requires 100 billion shillings to procure bio-metric system machines for the 2021 presidential and parliamentary elections.

The 2021 general elections will be the second time Uganda uses the Biometric Voter Verification System (BVVS).

The BVVS is a technological system that identifies the voter by the particulars contained in the national voter register through the use of fingerprints to prevent non-voters from casting the ballot.