Contractor distances self from biometric device failures in South Africa elections

A Johannesburg-based company, Ren-Form, which supplied biometric hardware to the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) says it is not responsible for glitches reported during general elections in the country in May.

An investigation by News 24 reveals that the IEC paid the sum of 546 million rand (US$.29.8 million) to the company for the supply of 40,000 biometric Voter Management Devices (VMDs) which reportedly caused delays during voting because some of the devices didn’t work properly. The IEC had initially hoped to procure 60,000 devices but changed its plan due to financial constraints.

In the report, Ren-Form’s attorney, Tshepo Mathapo, is quoted as parrying away the blame for the hitches. The legal representative said the problems experienced at polling stations had nothing to do with the hardware supplied, but rather with the software that was loaded unto the devices. Meanwhile, the supplier of the software used in not mentioned.

Among other things, the accusations are that the company supplied devices that were either faulty or not up to standard and that some of the problems had been identified since the devices were first deployed for local government elections in 2021. Ren-Form is an integrated communications and security printing company which has executed election-related contracts for South Africa and many other countries in Africa for many years.

The IEC is quoted as saying that it is working to make a “detailed assessment” of the technical glitches situation and will communicate on it in due course. A spokesman for the election agency addressed questions about spending on the devices saying it was “inclusive of supply, warrantees, device services and maintenance for the period of five years.” The IEC reportedly paid R13,650 (US$746) per device.

Apart from its involvement in South Africa, Ren-Form is linked also to an election devices procurement scandal in Zimbabwe, allegations the company has firmly rejected.

In the neighboring southern African country, procurement of biometric devices for elections last year went sour and a number of businessmen involved in the fraudulent contract are now facing trial. They are reported to have acted as middlemen for the contract won by Ren-Form, and recent information indicates they may also have indulged in acts which offend the country’s Money Laundering Act.

Ren-Form has been called out for supplying biometric registration kits and other election materials at an inflated price, with the bill totaling about $40 million.

Mathapo told News 24 that these and other allegations of wrongdoing aimed at their client are “unfounded and false” and that they were taking legal actions against the Zimbabwean outlets that published the information.

Article Topics

Africa  |  biometrics  |  elections  |  government purchasing  |  Ren-Form  |  South Africa  |  voter accreditation