Thales not fit to win EC contract for new hardware equipment – IMANI

The Imani centre for policy and education says investigations conducted into the Electoral Commission’s (EC) records at the finance ministry and it's intended road map to procure and embark on a new voters registration for the 2020 general elections will cost the country $150 million which defies the EC's claim that a new register is cost effective than maintaining the current set of equipment.

At a press conference on Tuesday, March 10, 2020, Vice President of Imani Africa, Bright Simons stated that Ghana already spends about four times the average cost for organising elections compared to other countries.

According to IMANI Africa, it emerged through its investigations that the French company that won the EC’s bid to provide hardware equipment, Thales Gemalto, has been blacklisted by the World Bank for various corrupt offenses and is on record for paying bribes to former South African President Jacob Zumah and paying bribes to officials in countries such as Benin for contracts.

Mr Simons also stated that the current timeline by the EC to commence registration on the 18th of April does not give the EC enough room to lay down the right logistic and technological framework before the December elections.