Ugandan Party Says Biometric Scans Won't End Vote-Rigging Fears
- Voters to scan fingerprints before casting ballots on Feb. 18
- Group says vote-counting process still vulnerable to fraud
This article is for subscribers only.
Uganda’s main opposition said next week’s elections still face the threat of rigging, even after authorities introduced a biometric system to register voters for the polls in which President Yoweri Museveni is seeking to extend his three-decade rule.
With the $19-million system, citizens will scan their fingerprints at polling stations on Feb. 18 before casting ballots for presidential and parliamentary candidates, a step the Electoral Commission says will eliminate the chances of people voting more than once. Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda, spokesman for the Forum for Democratic Change, the biggest opposition party, said the technology will have no effect on the East African nation’s vote count, where fraud can still happen.