Guyana election update: Proposed 156-day recount rejected
Election chief cites COVID-19, “matters of law” in recount
Guyana finds itself in another political deadlock after the opposition-nominated election commissioners rejected Thursday a 156-day timeline proposal for the recount of votes.
Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM) chief Keith Lowenfield laid out the proposal and cited legalities and the COVID-19 pandemic as reasons for the lengthy time of recount.
“The 156 days proposed for the activity may be quite a lengthy duration in the present circumstance,” Yolanda Ward, GECOM’s Public Relation Officer, said in a press statement. “[But we] had to consider matters of law in relation to the procedures to conduct a recount, approved decisions of the commission, and the current COVID-19 pandemic.”
The approved decisions specified that each ballot must be projected on screen, and the ballot boxes be carefully scrutinized on details and contents. This, on top of the health crisis crippling the world today and the number of staff who will work on the recount.
With 2,339 boxes to be recounted, Lowenfield’s team came up with the a more-than-five month work plan.
Opposition adamant about reworking the proposal
Commissioner Robeson Benn, an opposition-nominated officer, told reporters outside of GECOM’s headquarters on Wednesday that a “simple recount” should not take 156 days to execute.
“I am telling you, fundamentally, in no way, shape or form, should we have been provided with a document, which gives that type of duration,” he said. “I think we are still in the realm of being misled, misinterpreted and that the secretariat itself is not being helpful.”
Another commissioner from the opposition, Sase Gunraj, also expressed concern over the proposal but shared that he is willing to revise is. “I would want to reject that out of hand. This nation cannot survive a 156-day wait, but like I said we intend to rework it,” Gunrajsaid..
Meanwhile, Lowenfield’s office called the opposition comments “absurd, distasteful and unethical.”
Guyana 2020 elections: A quick overview
Elections in Guyana were held on March 2, and after more than a month, the country is still struggling to seat a president.
The Caribbean country is in dire need of a new leader, especially with the discovery of oil reserves in its own backyard, which can put Guyana in line with the world’s oil giants.
Aside from the oil boom, Guyana is not spared from the novel coronavirus. Latest data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) shows that the country has now 33 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and five deaths.
Tensions rose after both parties of incumbent President David Granger of the People’s National Congress – Reform (PNCR) coalition and Irfaan Ali of the opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) have both claimed victory, which led to violent protests that left one person dead and several injured.
The following week, on March 12, the head of Guyana’s Supreme Court has ordered a partial recount of votes, zeroing in on Region Four, where Guyana’s capital Georgetown is located.
A month later, on April 3, the Guyanese Elections Commission has decided on a full recount of the votes, following a recurrent electoral fraud allegations, with GECOM declaring the incumbent president’s coalition as winners. The high court then barred the announcement until all results are verified.