The Samoan Office of the Electoral Commission has moved to dispel rumours that ballot boxes for the April General Elections were produced in China and have secret compartments to store illegal votes.
TV1 Samoa reported Electoral Commissioner said all ballot boxes destined for booths around the country had been made locally with local materials.
Faimalomatumua Mathew Lemisio said the boxes were all made of plywood and had no hidden compartments.
He said all boxes were made in 2016 and used for the last General Elections.
Faimalomatumua also said that no one had cast votes yet after social media posts suggested some overseas-based seasonal workers had already cast their votes.
For the first time ever, Samoa will have pre-polling and they are scheduled to start 5 April, four days before the scheduled 9 April polling day.