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OAS wants GECOM to bar “partisan” officials from recount
– Says 156-day duration unacceptable
– US wants process completed ASAP
By Shikema Dey
The Organization of American States (OAS) Observer Mission has proposed the Guyana Elections Commission exclude “partisan” elements from the National Recount of Ballots from the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections.
Head of the OAS Mission, Bruce Golding
Chief of the (OAS) Observation Mission, former Prime Minister of Jamaica, Bruce Golding, in a statement yesterday conveyed his concerns that after more than six weeks, “an accurate and credible result” has not been determined to allow a duly elected government to assume office.
Golding relayed that this fact was “especially regrettable” in light of the COVID-19 pandemic “that requires every government to take decisive actions and to be able to command the confidence of its people in order to mobilize them in thwarting the spread of the virus.”
The Former Prime Minister opined that the current political crisis is not “intractable.”
“As the Mission had previously noted, the casting and counting of ballots on March 2 was conducted in a peaceful and transparent manner,” the statement highlighted.
What was needed was for the count from each polling station to be accurately tabulated and declared.
However, the OAS statement pointed out that “there is an abundance of evidence that this was not done in the case of Region 4 and this has led to the decision for the ballots in all ten regions to be recounted.”
Further, the OAS heavily criticized the proposal made by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM’)s Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, where he estimated that the recount would last 156 days.
Acting Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Michael G. Kozak
According to the statement, “the proposal that would have required five months to recount less than 500,000 ballots is unheard of in any democracy and would be unacceptable under any circumstances.”
Noting that GECOM has ordered that a revised timetable is prepared, the OAS urged the elections body to ensure that the procedures for the recount are “transparent and consistent.”
Further, the OAS has urged that the instructions to election officials conducting the recount are unambiguous and based on the provisions of the relevant laws, and called for the public to be “fully informed of the methodology to be used” for the recount.
Most notably, the OAS requested that GECOM ensures that the officials to be engaged in the recount are selected based on their impartiality and “those who have displayed partisan behaviour are excluded.”
Along with that, the OAS called for the duly authorized representatives of political parties and accredited observers to be allowed to see (but not handle) each ballot.
The OAS Mission further wants the legal provisions for challenging the determination of ballots to be fully respected an ascertainment is made as to whether the number of ballots cast corresponds with the number of persons recorded as having voted. Also it wants the result of the recount for each polling station to be compared with the Statements of Poll signed by the Presiding Officer.
Meanwhile, acting Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Michael G. Kozak, is calling on GECOM to urgently commence the recount of ballots used in the March 2 elections.
Kozak specifically stated that, “It has been six week since elections were held in Guyana with no result. The U.S stands with the Organization of American States (OAS) in urging GECOM to conduct a recount as soon as possible.”
He emphasized that Guyanese citizens need a government elected based on a credible count of their votes now more than ever.
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