BIOMETRIC VOTER REGISTRATION DATABASE REQUIRES NO ID CARD FOR VOTING

INTRODUCTION 

The Electoral Commission (EC) before the 2020 elections made it known to all Ghanaians that the voters’ register that was used during the 2016 elections was not credible. They argued that the database was blotted with foreigners, minors etc. The panacea according to the EC was a new software with enhanced facial biometric features to go with an upgraded hardware and a data centre to secure the data. The people in whom the sovereignty of Ghana resides, through Parliament, voted money for this audacious exercise of having a credible register and we all had our biometrics captured to preserve our democracy. Great news!

Now the flood caused by the spilling of excess water from the Akosombo dam in certain parts of the Volta region would cause most of the affected persons to lose both their voter’s cards and national identity cards. The worry is how they would be able to vote in the District Level elections in December, 2023 and the National Elections in 2024. The good news is that technically, with our biometrics having been captured, we really do not need any form of ID to be able to vote. The real test and day of reckoning of the touted benefits of having a biometric register by the EC and that of our digitalization agenda by the Vice-President has arrived.

This article is to highlight the fact that with a biometric voters register there is no need for any Ghanaian voter to mandatorily have any form of identification card to exercise the Constitutional right to vote.

FORMS OF IDENTIFICATION IN DATABASES

There are basically three ways of identifying people in any database. “What you have”, which is by way of a photo ID or card and is most relevant in a manual system. The second is “What you know”, which is a personal identification number (PIN or password) and is most relevant in non-biometric electronic databases. The third is, “Who you are”, which is by way of your biometric that is your thumbprint and/or facial recognition  is most relevant in a biometric database.

Any combination of the three ways can be used in identifying people in an electronic database depending on the sensitivity of the database and the transaction, or security levels. Where only one is used, like a password, as in logging into your laptop, it is called a “one-factor” identification. Where two are used, like a card and a password, as in ATMs, it is called a “two-factor” identification. Where all three are used, rarely used but may be needed to launch a nuclear weapon, it is called a “three-factor” identification.

For biometric databases, the verification question is; “Are you who you claim to be?” and the answer is yes I am physically here. Then the identification question follows; Do I know who you are? and the answer is yes you have captured my biometrics.  A “one-factor” identification is therefore enough since the actual person to be verified is physically present for the biometric to be identified against the database. This is the most secure form of verification and identification since passwords and ID cards can be stolen and used but not biometrics. Of course, we see in movies where thumbs are cut for this purpose. Nothing is fool proof anyway, risks are just mitigated. Also, one can forget a password or lose the card but not the biometric.

A biometric voters’ register just requires a “one factor identification” by way of the thumb print and/or facial recognition. ID cards at worst in a biometric voters’ register are a secondary source of identification and not primary. Only relevant in a systems failure where a manual verification must be made but that should be the exception, not the norm. To decide to move from a manual register to biometric means all the points of failures have been rigorously identified and mitigated, from hardware, software and the availability of connectivity.

RIGHT TO VOTE AND BIOMETRIC REGISTER

Under Article 42 of the 1992 Constitution, “every citizen of Ghana of eighteen years of age or above and of sound mind has the right to vote and is entitled to be registered as a voter for public elections and referenda.”

The Electoral Commission (EC) by the same Constitution has been given the administrative mandate to actualize Article 42. Now the internally displaced flood victims of the Volta region, have been biometrically registered to vote and by virtue of that, technologically there is no bar to their right to vote.

In a non-biometric register, “what I have” is the proof of identity. There is therefore the need to have a photo voter’s ID or national ID. This is a crucial requirement for verifying your identity in the manual registry under your name. The Reason we had to carry our voters’ card to the polling stations to be identified to vote.

In a biometric register, “who I am” is the proof of identity. I am my thumbprint, I am my iris, I am my face that you have captured and secured. There is therefore no need to produce any form of ID.

Technologically, “Who I am”, is a higher form of identification than “what I have” and more reliable in voter verification and identification. So technically and administratively giving the internally displaced flood victims their Constitutional right to vote should not be a problem.

The advantage of Ghana having a biometric voters’ register is the fact that once the person is physically present, she can be identified and verified in the biometric system without the need to have any form of ID card. Being asked to produce an ID card before one can vote defeats the purpose of the biometric technology and would be a waste of investment without the benefit, thus making it a financial loss to the State.

Whether knowing that the displaced flood victims of the Volta region can technologically be allowed to vote but still not allowing them to vote in the District level elections will be deemed “wilful” in our criminal jurisprudence under the crime of “wilfully causing financial loss to the State” is a matter for the legal system to determine as well.

The good news too is, due to the collation system being used by the EC, the biometric database being used is a distributed one and not fully centralized, meaning each polling station has its own database on the system being used at the polling station. This eliminates remote connectivity challenges and the potential risk of non-verification due to connectivity challenges for which a manual verification will have to be used hence the need for a photo ID.

The right to vote using a biometric database voters’ register is guaranteed technologically without the need for any form of mandatory ID.

CONCLUSION

Technically, with a biometric register, the internally displaced flood victims, who have lost their voters and national ID cards, can still vote in the District level and National elections. The day of reckoning for the EC asking for a biometric database with all its benefits has arrived. Also, the day for Ghana to showcase the benefits of her digitalization agenda has arrived. The day to defend the people’s Constitutional right to vote under Article 42 of the 1992 Constitution has arrived and technology can deliver that justice.

Whether legally they will get justice is another story, but it will be strange that the law that is supposed to give justice will rather deny them when technology can. On voting day, the onus is on the EC to make sure they all vote without being denied this Constitutional right. In fact, no registered Ghanaian voter needs an ID to be able to vote with a biometric voters’ register. The ID is the person’s biometric. Another Supreme Court decision in the offing. Whether it will be controversial like the birth certificate, we wait to see.