AS the sun rose, the electorate in Region 6 made their way to 373 polling stations to cast their ballots in favour of the political party of their choice.Some persons had lined up minutes before the opening of poll at 06:00hrs, while others turned up about midday, when the voting process was much faster.
It is expected that the 88,995 voters would cast their ballots in their home villages; however, just after lunch, some political parties were mobilising their team members to get into the villages to muster residents and supporters to visit polling stations and exercise their franchise .
At midday, the voter turnouts at New Amsterdam, Crabwood Creek, East Canje, were average, while in other areas, such as Whim, Port Mourant, Corriverton, and East Bank Berbice areas, the turnout was poor up to that time.
One of the challenges faced was reportedly the inadequate stamping of ballot papers, in that some of the numbers on the six-digit stamp were not legible, and some voters had rejected those ballots. Additionally, at midday, observers from the Electoral Assistance Bureau (EAB) were not allowed to enter polling stations in the region as they were not accredited by GECOM . However, these challenges were expected to be addressed before the close of poll.
At Jackson Creek, Jasorda Sankar, called ‘Buck’, aged 70, said she was not going to the polls, as her dilapidated house was devoid of water and electricity.
She had moved to that location over five years ago, after her previous house was maliciously destroyed by fire.
At Moleson Creek, Krishen Rajbans was seen standing on the roadway. He was born on August 26, 1961, and claimed to have been partially registered on three occasions. He was unable to complete the process after he moved from Cumberland, East Canje, where he had sustained severe injuries after a house had fallen on him.
According to him, several visits were made to the GECOM office at Corriverton without any success.
Also at Moleson Creek, a stone’s throw from the Suriname/Guyana crossing, a policeman reported that he did not get to cast his ballot on May 2, because his identification card had been misplaced. As a result, he was unable to furnish his superiors with the information and was hoping to make a quick visit to his home village about 60 miles away.
Meanwhile, at Crabwood creek, ‘Jukka’ was standing by the koker awaiting his boat with lumber-wallaba posts- from Orealla . “It’s business as usual,” said a shy Amerindian lad. He said he is 19 and was not too interested in voting. “I want money, that’s why I am working,” he reasoned.
Amputee Nalini Persaud thought I was giving her money when I first approached her at Number 43 Village. Her granddaughters were wheeling her along the main thoroughfare.
Nalini is a diabetic, and lost her lower limb to the disease just a year ago. She attends therapeutic sessions weekly. Despite the new and developing challenges she now faces, these did not deter her from casting her ballot.
Meanwhile, the sight of young men slamming dominoes on a table at the Number 62 Village bus shed was similarly reflected in other villages, as persons gathered to socialise after casting their votes much earlier .
However, in New Amsterdam, a first-time voter, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described the voting process as “terrible, the delays and the process is too long.”
Another resident, Shanella Chisolm, of Glasgow Village, noted that the process was a short one, and she attributed it to the time in which she chose to cast her ballot.
“I chose after lunch, as the sun is hot and most persons would choose to stay home during this period. It took me about 10 minutes. I am glad I was able to exercise my constitutional right, and I do hope my vote can make a difference.”
Another voter, Terry (only name given), aged 54 , works at the Transport and Harbours Department. He has a hearing impediment and was accompanied to the Tutorial Academy School by his sister, but he had not registered on the last occasion. He has the previous registration identification card, but his name is not listed and he is not pleased. His sister assures him: “You will vote at the next election in the next five years,” before they calmly walked off.

By Jeune Vankeric