Technology cannot solve electoral irregularities – Kabila

Mr James Kobina Bomfeh Junior, the Acting Secretary of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) Thursday said technology is an enabler and not a panacea to solving electoral irregularities.

He said just having a Biometric Voter Management System (BMVS) did not automatically guarantee the sacred principle of one person–one vote as there could be manipulations of the systems in many ways including programming hitches and poorly assembled hardware.

Mr Bomfeh Jr, in an analytical paper copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on the debate over the compilation of a new voters register, said there could also be a deliberate waive or suspension of the rules guiding the process such as not administering verification procedures.

The analytical paper, which was an expression of his personal views and not that of the CPP, said the debate had characterised the decision of the Electoral Commission (EC) to both procure a new BVMS and compile new voters register.

Mr Bomfeh Jr said the current system was first introduced in March 2012 during the era of Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, the Former Electoral Commission Chairman, with reluctance and tags.

He said with all the possible breaches, the call for an improved biometric technology, no matter how sophisticated, should be properly situated in the context of supporting the controversial human factor than a replacement.

He said the EC needed to resolve strongly that it was embarking on the exercise to procure a new BVMS with the right attitude of making it work to near perfection.

“The old wrong attitudes must give way for new focused driven attitudes of a positive orientation that embraces consistent and constant improvement,” he said.

Mr Bomfeh Jr called on all and sundry to discuss the issues presented as the justification for the acquisition of the BVMS and compilation of the new voters register rather than trying to shoot down every point in order to give concrete reasons for a resistance.