Confronted with video evidence from March 5, 2020, former Information Technology Manager at the Guyana Election Commission (GECOM), Aneal Giddings, today admitted that he and another GECOM staff member were alone in the Tabulation Center with the Statements of Poll (SOPs) after the process was halted due to his “unauthorized” seizure of the Elections’ server earlier that day.

Giddings continued to be cross-examined by Defence Attorney Nigel Hughes as the Election Case continued before Principal Magistrate Faith Mc Gusty.

The Attorney presented two video recordings to the Court this morning, with the first showing Giddings in the parking lot of the Ashmin’s Building with three other men, and the second, showing Giddings in the Tabulation Center within Ashmin’s Building in the company of another man.

It was then the Court heard that following the return of the server to the Tabulation Center, the then Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO), Roxanne Myers suspended the tabulation process due to the unauthorized removal of the equipment, and instructed everyone, including the election personnel and the party agents to go home.

But Giddings told the Court that he and another GECOM staff – Data Manager Paul Persaud – stayed back until the nighttime in clear breach of the instructions of the then DCEO.

Hughes: “You had SOPs in the room?

Giddings: “Yes.

Hughes: “No party official present?”

Giddings: “No”

Hughes: “No scrutineer present?”

Giddings: “No”

Hughes: “No GECOM employee present other than you and Paul Persaud?”

Giddings: “No.”

Mr. Giddings told the Court that he did not inform any of his superiors that he and Persaud were present in the Tabulation Centre with the SOPs long after the tabulation process had been halted.

Though confirming that there were SOPs in the room, Giddings said he could not recall the specifics with respect to which region or regions those SOPs derived from, but admitted that Region 4 SOPs were among those in the room.

“What authorized process were you conducting, in the absence of party officials, scrutineers, GECOM senior management? What official process were you conducting, after everybody else had been told to leave?” Hughes inquired.

In response, Mr. Giddings told the Court that he was “packaging and securing the SOPs” but later said he was acting on his own volition and not on the instructions of the then Chief Elections Officer, the Deputy Chief Elections Officer or the Commission.

Hughes suggested, and Giddings agreed that at the time he had the opportunity to switch and or alter the SOPs, and even remove them from the building.

The Court further heard that while Giddings and Persaud were in the Tabulation Centre, the Deputy Chief Elections Officer called him, and questioned him as to why he was still in the centre, and instructed both him and Persaud to leave.

The entire ordeal was not captured in the statement that Giddings provided to the Police in August 2020 when a criminal investigation was launched into the conduct of the elections.

Giddings also did not include in the statement that he and Persaud later left the premise in his car, with Persaud carrying a haversack. The video evidence presented to the Court showed Giddings speaking to two other men in the parking lot before he and Persaud left the premises.

Giddings repeatedly told the Court he did not know the men, but under intense cross-examination, he admitted that one of the two gave him something before he and Persaud drove off.

“Was it a flash drive?” Hughes questioned but the former IT Manager insisted that he could not recall what was given to him.

“GIDDINGS POWER”

Earlier in his testimony today, the former GECOM IT Manager disclosed that following the unauthorized removal of the server, the equipment was kept in his private car for two and a half hours before it was returned to the Tabulation Center. 

Myers had repeatedly instructed Giddings return the server after she had objected to its initial removal but it was not until Giddings came face to face with the GECOM Chairman and the DCEO that Giddings agreed to have the server returned.

He told the Court that he defied the orders of the DCEO because he believes he was protecting the server from the bomb threat to the building earlier that day.

The Defence Attorney, Nigel Hughes suggested that the server was removed based on “Giddings Power,” and not based on any statutory responsibility that the witness had, and Giddings agreed.

The Court also heard that following the removal of the server, Giddings messaged the then Deputy Chief Elections Officer and apologized for disobeying her instructions. Myers following the incident formally wrote Giddings on the matter, and it was then that he formally responded to the allegation, but did not accept fault or wrongdoing.

In Court today, he admitted that his actions were in breach of the terms of his contract as the then IT Manager of GECOM.

“It was a gross violation,” Hughes suggested, to which Giddings responded with a yes.

The matter continues tomorrow in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.

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