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PPP/C to update int’l observers on GECOM’S stance on COE’s for polling agents
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has lashed out at the Guyana Election’s Commission (GECOM’s)
PPP/C General Secretary Clement Rohee
decision to approach the Chief Justice for a ruling on Certificates of Employment (COE’s), warning that the party will submit its concerns about GECOM to observer bodies.
This was according to PPP/C General Secretary Clement Rohee yesterday as he hosted the party’s weekly press conference at Freedom house.
GECOM had recently announced its intention to seek Chief Justice Ian Chang’s ruling on whether the electoral body can indeed issue Certificates of Employment to polling day agents from political parties.
This was in a bid to ensure no one was disenfranchised should they be posted to locations outside of their designated districts.
In such cases, the agents would need the COE’s to be able to vote at the polling stations at which they are assigned to work .
The Commission’s Chairman, Dr. Steve Surujbally had stated that though the constitution lay out that only GECOM staff can receive the COE’s, the law also says that GECOM has the ability to make administrative decisions on the matter.
According to Rohee, GECOM’s initial stance on issuing the certificates was justified by law, and the fact that the body now intends to seek an interpretation from the Chief Justice has been duly documented in a dossier which will be given to electoral observers.
Rohee explained that the dossier the party had prepared would contain all of the PPP/C’s concerns with the electoral process.
“We have a dossier on these matters, fully documented to present to those who share our concerns.”
Rohee also sought to defend the PPP/C’s increasing interjections into the electoral process under the purview of it having the legitimate electoral authority and it being the party’s ‘right’.
“We are not creating roadblocks or hurdles for GECOM. We believe as a major stakeholder we have a legitimate right to raise questions.”
The decision by the Electoral Assistance Bureau (EAB) to conduct limited tests on the Revised List of Electors was mentioned by the General Secretary.
He observed that this was only decided after questions about the list were raised by leader of the A Partnership for National Unity +Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) David Granger.
According to the General Secretary, his party just wanted to help GECOM bring off a successful election.
Rohee also repeated his call for public vetting of GECOM’s polling day staffers, asserting that treating their profiles as ‘top secret’ would only serve to create doubts in people’s minds.
(Jarryl Bryan)
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