THE Private Sector Commission (PSC) has expressed satisfaction with the conduct of Friday’s voting process for members of the Disciplined Services by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) as the body noted that the entity was progressing satisfactorily towards the conduct of the elections on March 2,2020.

In a release issued on Friday, the body, which was accredited observer status by GECOM, expressed  some concern regarding what it terms, the “obvious lack of transparency and integrity“ with regard to the transmission of Statements of Poll (SoPs) from the Polling Stations to the Returning Officers of the respective 10 electoral Districts.

The PSC said it wrote Chairman of GECOM, Justice (ret’d) Claudette Singh on February 13, 2020, on its concern with regard to the delivery of the SoPs by the Presiding Officers to the Returning Officers and the timing of the announcement of the vote results by Returning Officers.

The PSC said, after having seriously examined the methodology introduced by GECOM for the delivery of the SoPs to the Returning Officers in the respective electoral districts, it has concluded that there are several possible security risks which could result in compromising the integrity of the SoPs.

The body said it was further concerned over the fact that, though the law gives unambiguous authority to the respective Returning Officers to declare the results of the elections for their respective districts immediately on the completion of the collation and certification of the votes, it has been the practice of the Chief Elections Officer to have the Returning Officers delay the declaration until instructed to do so by him. These instructions, the PSC said, have the undesirable effect of delaying the official declaration of the results by the respective Returning Officers.

The PSC said it developed a procedure of checks and balances aimed at ensuring that the entire post-poll procedures are carried out in the strictest compliance with the pertinent laws and has shared this procedure with the Chairman of GECOM.

The PSC is convinced that the institutionalization and implementation of the checks and balances will provide greater transparency relative to the post-poll activities leading up to the declaration of the results of the elections by the Returning Officers and will also generate confidence among the contesting Political Parties and their respective constituencies that GECOM is committed to the delivery of credible elections.
It said it will also bring common acceptance by all stakeholders that the elections were conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner.

The PSC also expressed concern regarding the decision by GECOM to revise the number and location of polling places which it noted can leave many voters disenfranchised. Like the PSC, Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo had also expressed concerns about the move by GECOM. However, on Friday Justice Claudette Singh, said the reduction came as a result of comments made by elections observer missions in the past and she made reference to a 2015 Carter Center report in that regard.

The PSC, on Friday, congratulated the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) on its introduction of a Code of Conduct and the commitment of all of the contesting political parties to observe the Code. The body also expressed concerns regarding reportage of elections in a balanced and fair manner.