Liberian Election Officials’ Suspicious Biometrics Dealings Draw Washington’s Attention

[Update 09/13/22: The US Embassy in Monrovia is now formally denying having sent a diplomatic note to Liberia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs requesting a sample voter registration card, according to a GNN Liberia report. But in so doing, a tone of concern rings through, with the US Embassy stating, “We urge the PPCC to fulfill its mandate of ensuring integrity and transparency in the procurement process so that the Liberian public gets full value for money in the use of public funds.”]

Liberia’s effort to establish a biometric voter registration program may become a locus for the US-China rivalry, thanks to seemingly improper dealings between Nigeria’s National Elections Commission and a China-based vendor, which appear to have sidelined a major US vendor.

The alleged dealings came to light via FrontPageAfrica, which discovered that the Chinese firm EKEMP listed the National Elections Commission as a client on its website. The problem is that a contact had not yet been publicly announced, nor had a deal with EKEMP in particular been approved by Liberia’s Public Procurement Concession Commission (PPCC). Other companies vying for the contract included HID Global, Waymark Infotech, and Laxton, among others.