IEBC says stolen laptops and kits were obsolete, pose no threat to election integrity
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has dismissed concerns over the theft of 952 laptops and 125 voter registration kits during past elections.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, March 15, IEBC said that the laptops were Electronic Voter Identification Devices (EVID) that were procured in 2012 for use in the 2013 General Election.
The commission said that the EVIDs have become obsolete and have a net book value of zero. They were not used in the 2017 and 2022 general elections, instead, IEBC used the Kenya Integrated Electoral Management System (KIEMS) kits.
“The equipment is not supported by both the manufacturer and the vendor,” IEBC stated.
IEBC further said that it has lined up the EVIDs for disposal after following proper procedure as dictated by law.
Regarding the 125 lost Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits, IEBC said that they were purchased in 2011, and posed only a very small risk because they only contained raw registration data that had not yet been processed for inclusion in the voter register.
“Furthermore, data stored in the BVR kits, if any, is automatically encrypted by the application system to ensure integrity and confidentiality,” IEBC added.
The commission assured Kenyans that it has transited to using KIEMS technology for future registration processes, and that “the obsolete EVIDs will not interfere with the credibility of election and its related processes”.