FORMER Canadian Chief Electoral Officer, Jean-Pierre Kingsley, has been retained by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to provide technical support to the electoral body.
GECOM’s Public Relations Officer, Yolanda Warde, told the Guyana Chronicle on Monday that Kingsley is in Guyana to provide technical support to the commission, particularly the secretariat.

She said he will be assisting the operations of the secretariat and based on his experience, he will share best practices as GECOM implements its work plan.
“His presence will not going to be on continuous basis in Guyana,” she said. Warde said Kingsley will make periodical visits and as the date for elections nears, he will be here full time.

Kingsley met with the commission on Tuesday and senior management officials on Wednesday.
According to the Elections Canada website, Kingsley served as Chief Electoral Officer from 1990 to 2007. It was noted that during his term, he adopted a proactive role for his Office, recommending and promoting key initiatives to make the electoral process more accessible.

There were also other achievements under his watch and they included the introduction of the 36-day election calendar, digitized electoral geography systems and products, and the establishment of the National Register of Electors.

Kingsley also presided over a period of unprecedented technological change, including the development of the Elections Canada Website as a comprehensive tool for public information, Elections Canada said.

GECOM is preparing to hold elections on March 2, 2020. The commission is currently overlooking the Claims and Objections period which ends on November 4, 2019. The body has been urging persons to utilise the time available at the moment and avoid a last-minute rush.

Ward advised that there have been reports of persons, purporting to be GECOM officials, visiting homes and offering to conduct transaction as part of the C&O exercise. The Commission is, therefore, urging residents to be vigilant and to only conduct transactions at the permanent and temporary GECOM Registration Offices.

The PLE has 646, 625 names and, at the end of the C&O, a Revised List of Electors (RLE) will be produced. The RLE will reflect all the updates to the PLE which include new registrants, corrections and the removal of names in the case of objections.