scrutinising transport of results P

7SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM NEWS GECOM agrees to more party agents scrutinising transport of results

The Guyana Elections C o m m i s s i o n (GECOM), in yet another last-minute decision, has opted to have an additional layer of scrutiny be put in place for the conveyance of statement of polls from polling stations.

The announcement was given by Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield on Friday following the signing of the Commission’s elections code of conduct at the entity’s High Street, Kingston Offices by party representatives.

Lowenfield intimated that unlike what had taken place in previous years, Deputy Returning Officers (DRO) transporting the results will now be doing so with additional party agents alongside them. According to Lowenfield, the decision was taken at the level of the Commission during a meeting on Wednesday last, where it was agreed, “…that there should be another layer of agents”.

He said they will be specifically accompanying the DROs from their offices as they uplift the statement of polls and boxes from Polling Officers (PO).

According to Lowenfield, the Commission has agreed that there should be another layer of agents as they receive boxes and statements, adding that it is the returning officers who will ensure that the statements are distributed in a timely manner. Further explaining the rationale behind the decision, Lowenfield said that in the Commission’s view, Guyana Elections Commission Chair, Retired Justice Claudette Singh

“as far as transparency goes, the Commission in its wisdom determined that every subset of our operations be monitored by party agents”. Lowenfield noted, for example, the presence of agents at polling stations and that they are being provided with the list, provided with the folios, “provided with what we refer to as the strike-off list”.

He said too, party agents are also present for and participate in the counting of the ballots.

It was noted that the law stipulates that at the close of count at a particular polling station that the results be placed at a conspicuous location.

The Polling Officer, he noted, is also required by law to ensure that a statement of poll is prepared for the returning officer and for the CEO.

He observed that ordinarily, from that point, it would have been a movement by the DRO unaccompanied by any agent.

Lowenfield suggested that all the Commission is looking to do is to have that process also be observed and monitored by a party agent, as is the case with activities of the Commission throughout the day.

The CEO also used the occasion to assure that Commission is ready for the holding of the 2020 General and Regional Elections and that preparation is advanced for the commencement of polls on time.

According to Lowenfield,

as of yesterday, the Polling Officers were counting off the boxes and contents of respective boxes and that these will be secured in areas where they are to be deployed in some instances today, “based on geography”.

The CEO reiterated that in the two days ahead of election, there will be movement across the spectrum Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield

since elections apparatus would in some cases have to be flown in early while at other locations boxes and other needed equipment

would be deployed as early as 03:00h on Monday to the polling stations “to ensure we are there on time to commence voting”.

8SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2020 | GUYANATIMESGY.COM NEWS

Twenty-five-year-old Oarl Benjamin of Port Kaituma, North West District (NWD), was on Friday arraigned for the murder of his drinking buddy, who he is accused of stabbing to death during a disagreement.

Benjamin was not required to plea to the indictable charge which stated that between February 23 and February 24, 2020, at 14 Miles Arakaka, North West District, he murdered Joseph Calistro.

The accused appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and was remanded to prison until March 12, 2020.

It was reported that the victim and suspect were imbibing at a shop when Caslistro reportedly became intoxicated and wanted to fight the accused, who ignored him and walked away.

However, the now dead man, who was armed with a pair of scissors, pursued Benjamin and assaulted him.

The accused became annoyed, disarmed Calistro and dealt him one blow with the same pair of scissors.

A wounded Calistro was subsequently taken for medical treatment at the Arakaka Health Centre where he was treated and sent away.

However, hours later, the victim returned to the said facility, this time with a breathing problem. The health workers administered oxygen but he succumbed in the process.

The dead man’s body bore a wound to the middle of the chest and another to the right arm. Murder accused Oarl Benjamin arriving at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts T hose gathered in the courtroom of Justice Sandil Kissoon for the sentencing of murder convict, 52-year-old Gavin Graham, were all taken by surprise when he brazenly hurled a bottle filled with liquid at a State Prosecutor whilst being escorted out of the courtroom.

The scene did not end there, as the mother of the convicted man picked up the said bottle and threw it again at the prosecutor - an action that landed her in handcuffs. Prior to the commotions, Graham was sentenced to serve three life imprisonment terms after he was found guilty for the murders of 39-year-old Abola Abrams, Shawn Whyte and the woman’s 68-year-old stepfather, Clifford Sampson.

It was reported that on January 2, 2015, Graham set alight Abrams’ Lot 636 C Field Sophia, Greater Georgetown home after she refused to reconcile their rocky relationship.

At the time, the now dead woman was in a new relationship with Whyte.

On that day, Whyte had visited the woman when Graham lit the fire and locked the doors to ensure they could not escape. Both suffered severe burns about their bodies.

Abrams’ stepfather, Sampson, who also resided in the home and tried to escape from the inferno suffered burns to almost 90 per cent of his body.

The trio died at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) after being rushed by neighbours. Defence Attorney Ravindra Kissoon asked the court to be lenient with his client as he is the father of two children. However, State Prosecutor in the matter Tiffany Lyken strongly asked the court to consider the fact that three innocent lives were lost and that the now convicted man pre-meditated his actions.

An unremorseful Graham stood in the prisoner’s dock as the sentences were handed to him.

Justice Kissoon ordered that the sentences run concurrently, with a possibility of parole after the convict would have served 30 years. Unremorseful murder convict sentenced to serve 3 life imprisonment terms …hurls bottle at State Prosecutor Sentenced to life imprisonment: Gavin Graham Miner charged for murdering drinking buddy D ays before the March 2 General and Regional Elections, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) was on Friday given assurances that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is adequately prepared for the upcoming polls.

Only Thursday, General Secretary of the PPP, Bharrat Jagdeo, raised questions about the readiness of the Joint Services to ensure that the elections are conducted in a safe and secure environment.

However, on Friday, Jagdeo, along with PPP/C Presidential Candidate, Dr Irfaan Ali, and Prime Ministerial Candidate, retired Brigadier Mark Phillips met with Commissioner of Police, Leslie James, to discuss the Party’s security concerns.

During the meeting, the Top Cop was supported by Deputy Commissioner with responsibility for Administration, Paul Williams; Deputy Commissioner with responsibility for Operations, Maxine Graham; Head of Special Branch, Nigel Hoppie, and acting Deputy Commissioner with responsibility for Law Enforcement, Michael Kingston.

Some of the issues discussed at the meeting included the Police Force’s operational readiness for Election Day activities, such as adequate transportation and personnel to provide security at Polling Places.

According to the PPP/C, its team specifically raised, as a matter of concern to many voters, the risk associated with persons congregating in close proximity to Polling Places after they would have cast their votes or at the close of polls.

“The Police Commissioner gave the PPP/C team his assurance of the Force’s readiness to provide adequate security measures for the 2020 General and Regional Elections. He informed too that ranks of the Guyana Police Force will be deployed to secure all polling places, as well as ensure security arrangements for ballot boxes,” a missive from the Opposition party detailed.

It was noted that the Top Cop also assured that the Force will ensure that the provisions of the Representation of the People Act are enforced, relative to ensuring no congregation of crowds within 200 yards of polling stations; ensuring no unauthorised person obstructs or interferes with access to, or egress from, a polling place and that no unauthorised person obstructs or interferes with the movement of ballot boxes and other material pertaining to the Monday’s General and Regional Elections.

On the other hand, the Police Commissioner also raised the issue of political parties encouraging their supporters to act in compliance with the law.

In response, the PPP General Secretary made it clear that the Police Force can expect full cooperation on this from the leadership of the PPP/C.

The PPP/C delegation thanked the Police Commissioner for the meeting and stressed that the Party is committed to a peaceful electoral process. No “night shift” in front of polling stations – Police Top Brass PPP General Secretary Bharrat Jagdeo in the company of Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali and Prime Ministerial Candidate, retired Brigadier Mark Phillips at the Police headquarters ...assures PPP of adequate security measures

Getting serious…

…about rigging W hen it comes to rigging elections, the PNC has done it so many times, they probably can’t even help themselves – even if they wanted to. Rigging is their default “factory setting” when it comes to elections. You remember that old ditty, “Fifty ways to leave your lover?” Well, just going by their record, the PNC has at least EIGHTY ways to leave their opponents in the dust at elections time via rigging!!

And just when you think you’ve managed to head them off from one route, they come up with another!! They set the ball rolling back in ’68 when Burnham decided he wasn’t going to be second-guessed by his UF coalition partner – even though they could’ve most likely won the elections.

But the overseas and proxy votes that did the trick then was “given up” in 1973 when he moved on to having all counting done in Camp Ayanganna in Georgetown. The army was conscripted to transport the ballots, and of course, could “take care” of any pesky citizen who wanted to ensure his vote was counted!!

But the National Register which was launched in 1968 – and then sprung at the last moment at the Opposition that the voters’ list would be extracted from it after insisting that it wasn’t going to be!! – is still around to offer some elections rigging.

While the Opposition has been given the royal runaround to sanitise the voters’ list through its PLE, C&O, and OLE incarnations, have they checked to see whether the NRR has been fiddled with?? Back in ’68, quite a few youthful PNC supporters had their age accelerated so they could vote. Have we checked exactly what Felix has been doing with the birth certificates and other records that maintains the NRR?

Then, of course, there’s the old standby that’s pulled out at every election – rushing the place of poll just as they’re about to close. If the Owl of Minerva flies at night, so does the PNC “nightshift” at the close of polls!! So we really don’t need the wisdom of Minerva to know this is in the cards this go around: Volda kindly reminded us of it some time ago!! We might also have moved away from the army transporting ballot boxes to be counted. But we now have the challenge of getting the equivalent “Statement of Polls” – conceded after a herculean struggle – physically up into the GECOM place of counting, don’t we??

Then, did you know that in the private-houses-aspolling-stations in the city, they always have a 100% turnout?? Every little bit helps!!

Like your Eyewitness’ been saying, he doesn’t know exactly HOW, but he KNOWS rigging’s in the cards!!

…about coronavirus Over in Shenzen province, the authorities have banned the consumption of cat and dog meat. Now while we may snicker, we should realise that the consumption of foods is a culturally induced behaviour. What do you think about all those Frenchies who down frogs legs with gusto!! But what the Chinese action has signalled is we’d better get serious about the coronavirus which is now a pandemic – that is, an epidemic that has spread to several countries, including our neighbour Brazil.

Now, there’s absolutely no need to be coy about the fact that the virus will sooner rather than later pop up here. And even though the Minister has assured us that “we’re ready”, the truth of the matter is we aren’t. And this is not a case of blaming the Government of the day – like foreign affairs, coronavirus isn’t a partisan issue! There’s so much that isn’t known about the virus at this stage, that while we shouldn’t panic…we must take precautions, like washing hands fastidiously.

And avoiding crowds. After March 2!!

Readers are invited to send their comments by email to eye@guyanatimesgy.com …about political investments When Ramjattan gave a shoutout to a businessman who’d paid for their new HQ, Raphael Trotman pointed out that these are “political investments” which have to deliver returns.

Well, the fella just got 164,000 acres of land!! Some returns, eh??