IEBC assures Mandera voters’ details intact despite BVR theft

“The Commission fears that three BVR kits may have been lost in the Arabia town attack, Mandera East Constituency/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 2 – The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) on Thursday said voters’ registration data collected in Mandera was safe despite an early morning theft of BVR kits by Al Shabaab.

According to IEBC Media and Communications Manager Andrew Limo, the attackers may have stolen three Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits but fortunately, the data collected was already entered in the backup system.

“The Commission fears that three BVR kits may have been lost in the Arabia town attack, in Mandera East Constituency.

“However, the Commission does not expect any data loss owing to the instituted back-up procedures. Further, the information contained in the BVR kits is encrypted and therefore not accessible to anyone other than IEBC,” he explained.

Limo explained that due to poor communication, the commission had not gathered complete information about the attack that saw its voter registration centre affected.

Al Shabaab attackers were said to have attacked an Administration Police Camp before stealing the BVR kits, three guns, police uniforms and a police Land Cruiser.

READ: Reinforcements sent to Mandera following Shabaab attack

A major security operation was launched to pursue to attackers and tighten security in the area.

About The Author

JUDIE KABERIA

Judie, an Associate Editor has worked as a journalist in Kenya and Germany. She has a Master’s Degree in New Media, Governance and Democracy, University of Leicester (U.K). She has scooped 10 journalistic awards. She has participated in international conferences in Germany, Switzerland, United States and Netherlands. Judie has written a booklet, ‘Justice and Peace in the Kenyan Eye’. She has a soft spot for human rights, crime, peace and justice stories.

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