Now that the Appellate Court has cleared the way for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to go ahead with the recount of all ballots cast in the March 2 General and Regional Elections, various stakeholders have expressed a similar view, that is; they do not wish to see certain GECOM officers who were part of the initial declaration of the results for District Four (Demerara-Mahaica), be involved in the process again.
These calls come against the backdrop of questionable results emanating from Electoral District Four which was overseen by Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo.
The Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) and the Private Sector Commission (PSC) are among the two latest voices in the call for the recount process to be credible and transparent and for these individuals to be excluded from the process.
The LJP, in an email to Justice (Rtd) Claudette Singh, Chairperson of GECOM, has asked that RO Mingo and Deputy Chief Election Officer (DCEO) Roxanne Myers play no part in the recount process.
Party Leader Lenox Shuman in his letter stated: “considering the public’s and political parties’ interactions or lack thereof with Mr Mingo and Ms Myers, we further recommend that [they] play no part in these recount as their previous actions stand to diminish and undermine the good work and integrity of the Guyana Elections Commission.”
The Private Sector Commission (PSC), who are accredited observers of the elections, have also called on GECOM to begin immediate preparations for the recount and have asked that these officers, along with the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) be excluded so as to avoid any questions being raised about the process.
“The PSC is satisfied, from its own observations, that the involvement of the Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo and the Deputy Returning Officer, Roxanne Myers, in the tabulation and verification process in District Four, materially contributed to the fraudulent tabulation and verification of the process and, it is, therefore, obvious that these Officers must not be involved in the process of the recount,” the PSC said in a statement.
The PSC has also appealed to the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Organisation of American States, the European Union, the Carter Center and the Caribbean Community to return to Guyana for the commencement of the recount by GECOM.
A unified international community has already warned Guyana that it could be isolated and even sanctioned if a president is sworn in on the flawed results.
