THE IMPACT OF BVAS ON ELECTION CREDIBILITY IN 2023 GENERAL ELECTION IN GOMBE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF GOMBE STATE

ABSTRACT The study examined the impact of BVAS on election credibility in 2023 general election in Gombe local government area of Gombe State. Although BVAS played a vital role in the 2023 general election unfortunately, there is concerned by observers and political parties that INEC has resorted to using incident forms to accredit card users in situations where biometric authentication has failed without being able to verify their true identities, this has given room for justification of rigging in some places which constituted a challenge to the credibility of the 2023 General Election. The objectives of the study were to examine the roles played by the BVAS in conducting credible election in the 2023 General Election in Gombe Local Government, to ascertain the challenges of BVAS in conducting credible election and to suggest ways that will improve the use of electronic devices in ensuring credible elections in future. Primary data was utilized, specifically, close ended questionnaire with Liker’s scale of Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D), Strongly Disagree (SD) and Undecided was used to collect data from the field. The Technological Acceptance Model (TAM) was adopted as the theoretical framework of analysis. The central argument of TAM is that users' acceptance of a new technology is determined by their Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of use. Findings revealed that BVAS is reliable, it enhanced reliability by preventing multiple voting as only accredited and verified PVC holders vote and it enabled virtual transmission of polling unit results, thereby eliminating manipulation at the collection center. The study recommends that, there should be adequate security for the election officials and adhoc staffs, CSOs and observers should monitor the deployment and usage of BVAS during elections lastly, both INEC and Ad-hoc staff should undergo a practical training on the use of BVAS.