The CARICOM high-level team, which scrutinized the recount of votes from the Guyana Elections has determined that although the recount unearthed irregularities and some defects, it still showcased the will of the people.
In a section of their report seen by News Source, the three-member team explained that they did not witness anything “which would render the recount and by extension, the casting of ballot on March 02, so grievously deficient procedurally or technically (despite some irregularities) or sufficiently deficient to have thwarted the will of the people and consequently preventing the elections results and its declaration by GECOM from reflecting the will of the people”.
The team said they are “unshakable” in their belief that the people of Guyana expressed their will at the ballot box and therefore the recount results are acceptable.
However, they noted that going forward, there are issues that must be urgently addressed by the government and people of Guyana when it comes to the elections and electoral process.
“Many of the instances of irregularities that we witnessed can be explained by either the incompetence of some of the Presiding Officers at the polling stations on March 02, 2020 and or the failure to give adequate training by GECOM to its staff on the varied possibilities which may have arisen at the level of individual stations”, the CARICOM team noted.
But they maintained throughout their report that despite its failings and flaws, the national recount process is not an indictment of the 2020 elections “and the team categorically rejects the concerted public efforts to discredit the 2020 poll up to the disastrous Region 4 tabulation”.
According to the CARICOM team, what is unmistakable is that a political audit of GECOM, both the Commission and its administrative arm is urgently wanted.
“It therfore, behoves whichever political party emerges victorious from these elections to initiate an immediate political audit as in a very real sense, GECOM betrayed its obligations to behave impartially and independently in the best interest of integrity based processes which did not favour any party or parties whether in terms of operation or policy decisions”, the team also noted.
The CARICOM team lambasted some unnamed Commissioners who it said made imprudent remarks to some media houses which added to the tense political environment in the country. The team also said it observed the antics of the political operatives from both within the Commission and from the political parties as they all attempted “to harness the media and their political capital for their own narrow and selfish political purposes”.
The high-level team said the constant references to irregularities made by GECOM Commissioners could only have a “deleterious” impact on the body that they are a part.
The CARICOM team left Guyana early morning and the report has been submitted to the GECOM Chair and Commissioners ahead of their meeting this afternoon.
While the CARICOM team has indicated that the results of the recount are acceptable and reasonably credible, the Chief Elections Officer in his report has determined that based on the issues and anomalies raised during the recount, it cannot be ascertained that the results have met the standard of fair and credible elections.
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