By William Selmah wselmah@gmail.com
A number of voters in Liberia’s presidential elections were on Tuesday unable to cast their ballots, because their names could not be found on the cleaned up Final Registration Roll (FRR) at precincts within the Monrovia area.
But at other voting centers visited by www.newspublictrust.com ,there were some voters who initially didn’t see their names on the voter roll posted at the voting precincts but their numbers were later discovered on the list of numbers posted next to the listing with photos.
Others without photos but serial numbers were allowed to cast their ballots.
One of the precincts was the Salvation Army School in the Monrovia suburb of Sinkor, where a polling officer told our reporter that two of such voters later discovered their numbers and were able to cast their ballots.
Those that were not permitted to vote were mainly those whose both photos and serial numbers could not be identified.
“I searched and searched for my photo and serial numbers but didn’t find them”, said Mr. James Dennis who had gone expecting to vote at a Congo Town polling precinct.
From all indication, those who found themselves in Mr. Dennis’ shoes, had their hope of voting dashed.
“I informed poll workers about my case who referred me to the National Elections Commission (NEC) headquarters in Sinkor, he explained.
Asked whether he was going to follow up with the NEC, Dennis said he had no means to transport himself to Sinkor and back before polls officially closed.
“I feel sad that I will not be able to vote the candidate of my choice at this stage of the process”, Dennis lamented.
Reports from other parts of the country also say a number of other voters who are carrying voter cards are complaining of not seeing their names on the published FRR.
As polling continues, reports are emerging that a number of other eligible voters who may not be able to cast their ballots are those who were trucked/bused from the areas they live by politicians (mainly representative candidates) during the first round of voting on October 10, 2017.
In Liberia’s southeastern Maryland County and other parts of the country, some voters are said to be unable to transport themselves to long distances where they voted in October.
Many who voted in Maryland County from other parts have up till late Tuesday not been able to reach the main commercial city of Pleebo and they have been pleading with the elected Representative Dr. Bhofal Chambers of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) to help transport them.
The Press Officer in his office, Bobbly Addison told the local Kings FM radio owned by George Weah of the CDC on Tuesday that Chambers was unable to transport them from faraway places.
One of the 8-count mandates from the Supreme Court of Liberia is that the National Elections Commission (NEC) clean-up the FFR and ensure that no one whose name is not on the voter roll should be allowed to vote in the runoff.