Parliament Introduces Biometric Attendance For MPs… Electronic Voting In Offing

Parliament has implemented a biometric attendance system for Members of Parliament (MPs) to record their presence during sittings, replacing the traditional attendance register. Speaker Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin announced this measure during the opening of the Third Meeting of the Second Session of the Ninth Parliament. MPs are required to register their attendance through designated biometric consoles; failure to enroll could result in being marked absent without permission.

The new system aims to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and accountability of parliamentary proceedings. The Speaker also directed parliamentary whips to formalize the allocation of seats and ensure every MP has a designated seat by the end of the week, as members' attendance and other records will be linked to their assigned seats.

The biometric attendance system is part of a broader digital transformation program for the eight-week parliamentary meeting, which includes the piloting of an electronic voting system to speed up decision-making and reduce errors associated with manual counting. While acknowledging potential apprehension from some MPs unfamiliar with computers, Bagbin assured them that the systems are user-friendly and that technical support would be provided.

The Speaker directed the Clerk to Parliament to engage relevant authorities to develop a plan for the responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) in parliamentary business, emphasizing the need for technology to strengthen institutional effectiveness, transparency, and accountability.