The National Election Commission (NEC) has announced the arrival of pre-packed elections materials for the December 8, 2020 Special Senatorial Election and Constitutional Referendum.
According to the National Elections Commission (NEC), the pre-packed elections materials arrived into the country via the Roberts International Airport (RIA) Sunday, November 1, 2020 on board a special chartered flight, Nordwinds Airlines, by a local Liberian-owned vender company, Unique Enterprise Group of Companies. The NEC Executive Director, Anthony Sengbe, at the head of technical team from the NEC, received the materials on behalf of the Commission Sunday.
The contract between NEC and Unique Enterprise Group of Companies states that Unique Enterprise Group of Companies must ensure that all pre-packed elections materials must be in the country on or before November 15, 2020.
The arrival of the pre-packed election materials runs contrary to a Public Procurement and Concession Commission (PPCC) rejection of the local Liberian vender, Unique Enterprise Group of Companies, that the company lacks the ability to perform and to meet the November 15, 2020 deadline set by the National Elections Commission. The PPCC had earlier informed the public that the vender, Unique Enterprise Group of Companies, was unqualified to supply the election materials before election day, December 8, 2020.
A statement from the NEC said the total cost of the pre-packed election materials is US$1.6 million, to include election day voting materials, stationary polling items, actual materials, as well as training election materials. US$605,000 for the special chartered flight from China and US$700,000 for actual materials was paid.
A statement quotes Executive Director Sengbe as saying that the pre-packed election materials were escorted early Monday morning from Roberts International Airport by officers of the Liberian National Police (LNP) and a team of National Elections Commission staff to the warehouse of the NEC on 9th Street, Sinkor.
Meanwhile, the National Elections Commission (NEC) on Monday, November 2, 2020 successfully off loaded all of the pre-packed election materials for the December 8, 2020 Special Senatorial Election into the warehouse at the headquarters of the Commission. The election materials are now under the protection of officers of the Liberia National Police (LNP) assigned at the Commission.
