‘Nepalis living abroad can be enabled to participate in voting through embassy or postal voting’
Subba suggested that to facilitate voting for Nepalis living abroad, a phased approach could be adopted—starting with voting at embassies, followed by technology-based postal voting, and eventually moving to i-voting.
KATHMANDU:- Election Commissioner Rajib Subba has asserted that Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) could be used in the upcoming Provincial Assembly elections.
During his parliamentary hearing, Subba acknowledged that using EVMs was not feasible for local-level elections due to the large number of candidates involved. However, he maintained that such machines could be utilized for the Provincial Assembly elections. Subba also suggested that holding the elections in phases would be appropriate for this purpose.
At the hearing committee, he emphasized the need to first enact three laws to facilitate internet-based voting (i-voting).
“Cybersecurity laws, data protection laws, and the Electronic Transactions Act need to be amended,” Subba said. “After that, we can carry out the remaining work.”
He asserted that Nepal possesses the necessary manpower to develop the technology for internet-based voting.
“We possess the necessary technical talent, but the government needs to arrange the budget,” said Subba. “An Information Technology Division led by a Joint Secretary should be established at the Election Commission; however, there is currently no provision for a Joint Secretary-level position.”
Subba suggested that to facilitate voting for Nepalis living abroad, a phased approach could be adopted—starting with voting at embassies, followed by technology-based postal voting, and eventually moving to i-voting.
During the hearing, Subba emphasized that trust is more important than technology and urged the lawmakers on the hearing committee to place their trust in the technology.
