I believe most media houses have chosen to ignore APNU+AFC

Jun 21, 2020 Letters

Dear Editor,

A number of key players and institutions have at different times raised issues that keep casting doubts about the elections process and thus outcome, and have led me to question whether the Chairperson of GECOM really wishes to see a fair verdict.

Despite internal party pressure, President David Granger agreed to a recount. If we have accepted the recount, then we should also be accepting the allegations arising out of the recount, and for them to be dealt with before a declaration. To try saying irregularities can now only be dealt with after a declaration of results runs counter to the recount. For consistency of the law, it must be replicative; as such shouldn’t the recount be invalidated?

Towards the end of the recount, former Attorney-General, Anil Nandalall initially said “fraud once committed, makes everything a nullity. Everything tainted by fraud is void ab initio” suggesting the elections should be nullified. Following the end of the recount, now Anil and other senior PPP members are saying let us have a declaration then deal with allegations of fraud thereafter. This double standard flies in the face of a fair and just approach and as Martin Luther King, Jr., said “justice too long delayed is justice denied”. Noticeably missed from the PPP echelon is the refrain from denying such a fraud has occurred.

Then the CARICOM report, Executive Summary, said, “From the outset, the Team wishes to acknowledge that the exercise that we observed was not in fact a recount. It was an audit of the votes cast on March 02, 2020 and from the start, it was conceived as an audit, notwithstanding the statements on a national recount. A recount of votes means exactly that, a counting of the ballots cast. In this case, the so-called recount extended to issues normally reserved for an audit of ballots cast in an election.” Instead of praising GECOM for having go further to ensure the recount was a clean process, this statement tries to imply GECOM did something wrong. Isn’t it a good thing that an audit-like recount was performed, we were able to glean all the irregularities which occurred, like missing record books, counter foils, all tantamount to stuffed boxes? PPP has not denied ballot boxes may be stuffed, all they are saying is an elections petition is needed.

The CARICOM Report then in its conclusion and recommendations, went on to cast doubt on the electoral process with this double speak. “Yes, the recount suggests that the poll was far from perfect but the imperfections cannot deny that the elections and therefore the recount were reasonably credible.” Any right-thinking person will struggle to read “far from perfect” means “reasonably credible”. What is CARICOM really trying to say? Perhaps the next paragraph helps.

And then to further conclude the CARICOM Report says “It therefore, behooves whichever political party emerges victorious from these elections …” Did CARICOM really agree the elections were credible, because clearly they have a serious double standard as to who emerged victorious? The CARICOM team must know, and for them to conclude this suggests they are saying the elections were not credible.

In addition, a press release from GECOM on 16 June 2020, it is quoted that “The Chairperson posited that she is of the opinion that some of the allegations are of a serious nature and must be addressed. However, Article 163 (1) (b) of the Constitution confers on the High Court the exclusive jurisdiction to determine the validity of an election.” Again, trying to restrict a fruitful and beneficial outcome of the elections on the basis of a recount which took place before its time, should also warrant the allegations be likewise heard before a declaration of the result.

Finally, given all that has occurred over the past 3 ½ months, no one, not even the courts have come to grips with how we deal with a matter of stuffed ballot boxes. Will the Courts allow missing supporting documentation to go unpunished which allow stuff ballot boxes to persist? And notably media houses have chosen to ignore that APNU+AFC has ironically but consistently taken the position of trying to have the results annulled rather than themselves declared the winner, despite credible evidence suggesting that a discount of the irregularities will lead to APNU-AFC victory.

Yours truly,
Krishna Persaud