A heated exchange between People’s Progress Party/Civic (PPP/C) Tabulation Officer Bibi Aneishaw-Mohamed – a witness in the Elections Fraud Case – and Defence Attorney Nigel Hughes, resulted in the case being adjourned earlier than expected this morning.

At the time of the incident, Hughes was cross-examining the key witness in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, grilling her on a spread sheet she had tabulated and the declarations made by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) during the course of the 2020 Elections and the National Recount that followed.

Mohamed, who from the onset of today’s hearing was repeatedly cautioned by the Chief Magistrate (ag), the Prosecutor and the Defence, told the Court that Attorney Hughes had changed the question he had initially put to her, and was attempting to mislead the Court.

Her remarks infuriated Hughes.

 “Don’t tell me I am misleading any evidence….I have been very patient with you…and if you really want to get rude, we can get rude,” Hughes said.

But even as the Acting Chief Magistrate attempted to intervene, Mohamed fired back telling Hughes, “you can’t call me racist.”

On interjecting, Magistrate McGusty said there was no need for the Court to descend to that level, even as she again cautioned Mohamed.

“We don’t have to descend into that. Ms Mohamed I asked you, at the start of the trial, even when you came back again, I asked you to listen carefully to the questions, answer the questions you are asked. And if you do not understand the question or you do not understand one of the questions, you ask me and I will ask Counsel. So, there is no need for yourself and counsel to be in this back and forth, and as you can see it is not working out,” Magistrate Mc Gusty said.

But Mohamed did not stop there as she attempted to justify her behavior in Court, telling the Magistrate that Hughes was constantly referring to the exhibit and altering his questions.

“I am entitled to ask questions and refer to the document. I am entitled to do that. If she thinks I am trying to confuse her, that’s her problem, that’s her problem. And that’s why they have two Counsel as prosecutors, if they believe I am being unfair they can object…but I am not going to have some witness, especially a witness like her tell me what I am trying to do,” Hughes told the Court.

As if it were a debate, Mohamed again fired back at Hughes, even as the Chief Magistrate (ag) interjected for a second time, but that did not stop the witness.

“Mr. Prosecutor your witness is not even listening to me,” Chief Magistrate (ag) Mc Gusty told the Prosecutor.

Rising to his feet, Special Prosecutor Darshan Ramdhani said it is clear that tempers are high, and the Counsel may have said something he ought not to have said.

“This racial imputation is uncalled for,” Ramdhani told the Court, adding that his witness is upset.

“It should not have happened,” Ramdhani added.

It was against that backdrop that the acting Chief Magistrate took a decision to adjourn the case.

Mohamed is expected to return to Court at a later date for the completion of her cross-examination by the Defence.

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