NEC taps Laxton in Liberia’s third try to contract biometric voter registration kits: report

Laxton Group has been selected to supply biometric voter registration hardware and software to Liberia by the country’s National Elections Commission following a bid selection process do-over.

The NEC sent a request this week for “No Objection” to Liberia’s Public Procurement and Concession Commission (PPCC), which if granted will lead to the award of the contract, The New Dawn reports. The request notes PPCC’s recommendation to select amongst the remaining bidders after a previous request by the NEC to award the contract to Ekemp was rejected twice.

The contract is worth $12 million dollars, and involves the supply of hardware and software to enroll voters and issue cards that can be used in voter verification.

The process and role of NEC Chairperson Davidetta Browne Lansanah are roundly criticized, meanwhile, by an unnamed commissioner in a report from the Liberian Observer. The anonymous official suggests Lansanah should have recused herself from the process amid widespread confusion and concern about the process.

Local media have questioned the procurement process itself and the NEC’s role in it. Liberia is also dealing with a slowdown in enrollments for its national ID card, though the National Identification Registry head says the problem is temporary.

A recent update to the elections timetable says the voter registration process will begin on December 15.

Laxton Group CEO Lyle Charles Laxton tells Biometric Update in an email that his company has not been notified about any decision, and that misinformation has been observed in local media reporting of the full affair.

Article Topics

Africa  |  biometrics  |  elections  |  government purchasing  |  Laxton  |  Liberia  |  voter registration