Monrovia — Weeks ago, Local Voices Liberia fact checking desk fact-checked a claim that “children were obtaining Biometric Voter Registering Cards to vote in the 2023 General Elections”.
Report By: Jerry Gaye/Local Voices Liberia
The verdict of our fact-checked report was “Unproven” because there was no evidence to substantiate the claims and the National Elections Commission had not reported that there were unscrupulous incidents at the time.
The viral photo showing three kids holding what appears to be BVR cards circulated on social media with individuals who shared the photo claiming that the kids had obtained BVR cards thus qualifying them to vote in this year’s pending elections.
Mohammed Ali, the Director of Political Affairs in the office of Unity Party standard bearer, shared the photo and claimed that the kids were registered in Maryland County.
Mr. Ali, in a telephone conversation with the Local Voices Liberia iVerify team, claimed that the photo was sent to them by Unity Party observers in the counties.
LVL Fact Checking Desk observed that the same photo was also shared by several others on social media but withe claims that it was taken in different locations.
Another poster, Charles Roberts, a member of the Unity Party, also shared the same photo but claimed that the children were registered in Grand Kru County.
Based on our research and review of the claim, we concluded that the claim was unproven.
But on Sunday, May 21, 2023, the NEC, in a press release stated that it has “detected several duplicates and underage registrations through the completion of data synchronization by its Central Management System (CMS)”.
Wrote NEC: “Several duplicates and underage registrations are being detected, and their voter information deactivated until further investigation.”
The Commission furthered that “all ineligible registrants will be removed and in cases where there is/are alleged criminal motives, referred to the Ministry of Justice for immediate action.”
Meanwhile, the Commission has informed the public that it will begin the “Exhibition of the Provisional Registration Roll (PRR)” on June 12 and end on the 17th of June 2023 with all the 2080 Voter Registration Centers opening simultaneously across the country.
To ensure that only eligible voters remain on the voters’ roll, the NEC says “It is important that the general public bring forward all concerns during the Exhibition exercise.”
In the release, the NEC extends gratitude to “all electoral stakeholders, including local and international partners, the Ministry of Justice and the National Security Agencies, including the Liberia National Police and the Liberia Immigration Service, owners of properties used by NEC, all permanent and temporary elections workers and the People of Liberia for their tireless efforts and love for country demonstrated throughout the BVR process.”