A suspicious census, a cash-strapped electoral commission and voter eligibility based on phenotype signal a dubious October election. For months, it was locked in a battle of wills with the government’s procurement regulator over the selection of a biometric voter registration (BVR) supplier. In one electoral district, voter trucking by political entrepreneurs incited hostility and disrupted the registration process. Rules, regulations, norms and beliefs that foment inequality and injustice are imperilling Liberia’s electoral process. If implemented promptly, these recommendations could halt what we fear may be a bungled election that triggers a much wider political crisis.

Source: Daily Observer April 20, 2023 19:26 UTC