Voter ID numbers duplicated during one-day voter registration exercise

The Electoral Commission (EC) has indicated that there was the duplication of some voter ID numbers during the registration process earlier on October 1.

“It has come to the attention of the Commission that a number of Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits at some Registration Centres have issued Applicants with Voter ID numbers that have already been issued,” the EC said in a statement.

But the commission added that “this error has been corrected.”

The affected applicants will be contacted and issued with new ID cards with unique numbers,” according to the commission.

“It is important to note that, the biometric and biographic details of the affected Applicants are intact,” the EC assured further.

The electoral roll was opened from 7 am to 6 pm at its district offices for persons who could not participate in the mass registration exercise organised in June and July.

Some of the people who participated are voters who were outside the country due to COVID-19 restrictions, those who were under a 14-day mandatory quarantine and could not take part in the mass voter registration, and eligible voters who were duly issued voter ID cards but whose names are missing from the register under exhibition.

Persons who recently turned 18 were also given the chance to register.

The Public Elections Regulations law indicated that the EC can “include in the register of voters, the name of a person who qualifies for registration as a voter and is registered but shall not include in the register of voters the name of a person who qualifies to register as a voter for an election but who registers less than sixty days to that election.”