Liberia Immigration Service Arrests Eight Sierra Leoneans for Illegal Voter Registration – Latest Liberian News

The Liberia Immigration Service (LIS) has reportedly arrested eight Sierra Leoneans including an officer of the Sierra Leone Immigration Department for registering in the biometric voter registration (BVR) exercise in Grand Cape Mount County.

LIS Director of Public Affairs, Abraham Dorley, told reporters that the eight Sierra Leoneans are currently undergoing investigation.

Mr. Dorley explained that within the next 24 hours, LIS Commissioner General Robert Budy will be writing a formal communication to the Sierra Leonean Embassy near Monrovia to officially complain about their nationals interfering in the electoral process in Liberia.

According to him, the arrest of the Sierra Leoneans including an immigration officer in the biometric voter registration process is a serious security risk and has the propensity to create confusion and electoral violence.

The BVR exercise was launched by the National Election Commission to promote stop voters from registering multiple times and promote transparency and credibility and the electoral processes.

But since the start of the process in six counties in Montserrado and Grand Cape Mount, it has been marred by voter trucking and violence between rival politicians in some quarters.

The arrest of the Sierra Leoneans, officials say, should not be taken lightly to stop others from coming across the border to register to vote.