The
ballot boxes should be transported to the counting centre in a vehicle with a
closed compartment and a lock that can be sealed. An EMB official should be
present and in charge of the material. All the proper information on the
vehicle, the driver, the numbers of the seals used on the closed compartment,
etc. should be written on a waybill and given to the driver.
This
same information should be communicated to the counting centre so that it can
be checked upon receipt. Such measures promote efficiency of transport and
prevent fraud.
In the
process of transfer from one kind of transport method to another (when using
more than one type of transportation such as from a truck to a boat and then
back to a truck), the EMB official should verify the following: that all ballot
boxes were transferred; that a new seal was placed on the lock of the
compartment of the new transport vehicle; and note the number of the new seal
on the waybill. The driver of the new vehicle should sign the waybill
indicating that the transfer was properly done.
Persons
who accompany the ballot boxes (representatives of political parties and
candidates, observers and electoral officers) should sign as well.
In
areas where potential violence may compromise the safe delivery of the ballot
boxes, a vehicle escorting the carrying vehicle may be appropriate. Armed
forces, police, or a national or international organization may be used to
provide the needed security. An election official and representatives of
political parties should accompany the ballot boxes and observers can follow in
another vehicle.
The
ballot boxes should not be left unattended at any time unless they are locked
in secure storage. To demonstrate transparency during transportation,
representatives of political parties and candidates and observers should be
encouraged to accompany the ballot boxes from the voting station to the
counting centre.
Prior
arrangements must be made regarding who is delegated as a representative of
political parties and candidates during transportation, since it will not be
possible to have representatives of many political parties and candidates
accompanying the ballot box transport.
Once at
the counting centre, the official responsible for the reception of the ballot
boxes should collect the waybill from the driver and verify all information:
numbers on the seals, driver identification, etc. The same information should
be verified against information previously transmitted.
The
official then breaks the seal and the ballot boxes are counted and removed from
the vehicle to the planned location in the counting centre. All forms attached
to the ballot box and the seals are verified before putting a sticker or coloured
tape on the ballot box indicating that the ballot box is ready to be counted.
The
waybill is completed and signed by the official responsible for the reception
of the ballot box, the driver, and representatives of political parties and
candidates.
Official
copies should be given to the driver, representatives of political parties and
candidates and observers. The electoral official, who is receiving the ballot
boxes at the counting centre, should keep the original.
