The wife of Communications Consultant, Christopher “Kit” Nascimento, was ordered out of the Courtroom this morning while he was on the stand in the Election fraud trial.

The wife, Gem Madhoo-Nascimento was ordered by Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty to leave the Courtroom after she was accused of trying to assist her husband with identifying one of the accused from where she was sitting in the Courtroom during his testimony.

When the trial resumed this morning, 93-year-old Kit Nascimento took the stand. He was an observer for the Private Sector Commission during the 2020 elections.

While offering evidence, Nascimento found it difficult to identify an APNU+AFC representative who was present at the Region Four Command Centre on March 13, 2020, and now sits accused of electoral fraud along with eight others.

“I am unable to identify the person, clearly and truthfully,” Nascimento told the Court after standing to his feet, and walking to an area where the accused were sitting.

He was asked by the State Prosecutor, Darshan Ramdhani to identify the APNU+AFC representative.

After taking a look at his written statement, Nascimento told the Court that Carol Smith-Joseph was the APNU+AFC representative who was present at the Command Centre on March 13, 2020 when the then Returning Officer (RO), Clairmont Mingo indicated that he was proceeding with the tabulation.

Nascimento said Smith-Joseph, amid fierce objections by PPP/C Representatives, told the Returning Officer to proceed with the tabulation.

However, when given a second opportunity to identify Smith-Joseph in the Courtroom, Mr. Nascimento told the Court that he did not see her in the Courtroom.

However, Smith-Joseph was sitting among all of the accused in the matter.

It was during that exchange that Nascimento’s wife, Gem Madhoo-Nascimento was observed directing her husband where to look in the Courtroom, and her reported actions were observed by the Defence Attorneys.

“Might the record reflect that the wife of the witness was pointing in a particular direction at a crucial time in the evidence,” Defence Attorney, Eusi Anderson told the Court while objecting to the action.

It was then that Madhoo-Nascimento was ordered to leave the Courtroom. Once she left the Courtroom, Nascimento resumed his testimony.

Earlier in his testimony, Nascimento told the Court that on March 4, 2020 he visited the GECOM Command Centre where the votes were being tabulated.

He said at the time, there were representatives from the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) and other political parties, as well as the members of the Diplomatic Corps, including the then US Ambassador, British High Commissioner, Canadian High Commissioner and EU Ambassador.

According to Nascimento, the PPP/C was represented by Sase Narine and Sonia Parag. However, he was unable to identify the names of the APNU+AFC agents.

Nascimento recalled that during the tabulation exercise the PPP/C representatives began to object to the use of a spreadsheet, and had insisted that the Statements of Poll (SOPs) be used.

“They were saying that what was being displayed was not a SOP – a statement of poll – and that the figures that were being called did not match what they said they had. They said they had SOPs,” Nascimento recalled.

He said what was projected was a spreadsheet, and not an SOP, adding that he was familiar with the distinctive features of an SOP.

Interjecting, Attorney-at-Law, Darren Wade – who forms part of the defence team – told the Court that the Communications Consultant is not the competent authority to speak on the SOPs.

But maintaining that he knows what a Statement of Poll looks like, Nascimento further testified that the then British High Commissioner showed him a copy of an SOP that he had in his possession to suggest that the numbers being called out by the Election Officials were inaccurate.

“What the British High Commissioner had is not necessarily a document from GECOM or a SOP,” Wade said as he repeatedly objected.

Nascimento further alleged that during the course of the objections at the GECOM Command Centre, the then Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield entered the tabulation room, stopped the proceedings, and indicated to the Returning Officer (RO) Clairmont Mingo, after comparing the two documents, that the numbers projected were not matching the ones he had in his possession.

The Communications Consultant said the next day he was shocked at an attempt by the then Returning Office to declare the results of the elections for the district, although the process had not been completed.

“I was astonished because I knew that the count had not been completed,” Nascimento said while adding that there was an uproar, particularly from the PPP/C agents including the Bharrat Jagdeo and Irfaan Ali.

Defence Attorney Nigel Hughes later grilled Nascimento on the identity of the APNU+AFC representatives, and whether or not he had copies of the SOPs or any documentation including video evidence to support his claims. He responded in the negative.

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