Thousands of ‘Claims and Objections’ workers owed

Apr 07, 2010 News

Finance Ministry still to release tens of millions – GECOM

By Mondale Smith

Payments amounting to tens of millions of dollars owed to scrutineers and persons who worked for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) during the ‘Claims and Objections’ period nationwide, are cast in a cloud of uncertainty.
This is the report from GECOM officials following complaints from some who worked and have been waiting for more than a month.
The almost nationwide exercise involved thousands who represented 71 local authority areas, 65 neighbourhood democratic councils and six municipalities and to date, none have been paid.
GECOM’s financial and administrative management falls within the ambit of the CEO Gocool Boodoo, the Chief Election Officer. When this publication contacted his office, a female employee said that he was out for the day and she referred all queries to the Public Relations Officer, Vishnu Persaud.
Yesterday, Persaud confirmed that no payments have been made to scrutineers to date. He assured that his commission has submitted all the necessary information and documents to the Ministry of Finance and stated too that “We are still working on getting the monies from the Ministry of Finance but we have not yet received the release of funds from the government.”
He however assured that “when we do (get the money) we will make payments”.
Persaud said too that Boodoo has done all the necessary filings from GECOM’s end to the Ministry of Finance and that there were some minor queries which were addressed by the CEO and so “we are now awaiting the release of funds.”
Persaud was emphatic that “When that (release from Government) will happen is what we are not sure of. It’s all up to the Finance Ministry”.
On the basis of anonymity for fear of victimisation, the contention of some persons who worked for GECOM during the claims and objections period is that “We need someone to shed light on when people will be paid because it’s been more than a month and still no word and no one seems to know what is happening”.
One man from the North Georgetown district told this publication that he received payments for services rendered in December but afterwards “we have not been paid for works carried out during the period January and February”.
The claims and objections period has been completed since February 28.
Unofficially, some continued working after February 28 for about two weeks, and yesterday one woman said “When we queried about our payments through the Registration Officer for North Georgetown, we were told she don’t know when we are going to be paid…That is what she always keep saying every time we query.”
All of the complainants agree that when they started working they signed contracts that stipulated hours of work and some who worked from 15:30hrs until they finished working.
“We were registering people up to 19:00hrs then after that time we would be in the office tallying the day’s work. We got no meals or transportation and on most occasions we worked until 11 yet now we can’t get our pay”, one of the irate people said.

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Thousands of ‘Claims and Objections’ workers owed

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