Region Two recount completed - Controversial IT Technician Promoted to Recount Supervisor

Region Two recount completed – Controversial IT Technician Promoted to Recount Supervisor

May 19, 2020 News

Yesterday, on the 13th day of the National Recount exercise, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) managed to complete the recount of 54 ballot boxes, raising the total to 642 ballot boxes.

The recount notable saw the completion of all 135 boxes in Region Two, the second regional recount to be recounted after Region One was concluded on Friday, with the certification of the results was completed on Sunday.

Yesterday saw the beginning of the counting of boxes from Region 6, with the count for Region 7 anticipated to commence today.

GECOM’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Yolanda Ward announced last evening that the 54 boxes counted yesterday included nine ballot boxes counted for Region 2; 17 for Region 3; 13 for Region 4’ and 12 for Region 5; and three for Region 6.

She went on to say that 608 ballot boxes have been tabulated for the General Elections, while 609 were completed for the regional elections.

Additionally, Ward disclosed that the Commission, during a meeting conducted yesterday, spoke about the allegations of deceased and migrant people voting, which are allegations that are being made by the incumbent APNU+ AFC. However, no decisions have yet been made on how to address the aforementioned issues, she noted.

On the other hand, two additional workstations were approved by the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF), yesterday, with the aim of ramping up the pace of the recount— one station to Region 6 and the other to 7.

Meanwhile, GECOM has promoted to recount supervisor an IT technician, Enrique Livan, who was involved in the controversial removal of a flash drive at the Ashmin’s Building, the then site office of the Region Four Returning Officer, during the initial tabulation process after the March 2 General and Regional Elections. According to Ward, Livan’s elevation occurred after a GECOM staffer left for Moruca, Region One for a period of seven days and, with the aim of alleviating and continuing work, Livan was promoted.
The appointment of Livan, who has been promoted to supervisor at Workstation 10, has prompted the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) to write a damning letter to the Chair of GECOM.

In the letter, the PPP/C claimed that since Livan’s promotion there has been a “deliberate sloth in the counting of Region 4 ballots”. Against this backdrop, the party appealed for the additional workstations to be allocated to Region Four instead of Regions Six and Seven.