By Gabriella Chapman

REPRESENTATIVES from Guyana’s National COVID-19 Taskforce, including a virologist, visited the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), on Thursday, to conduct their assessment on the possibility of expanding and increasing the number of workstations for the national recount of the March 2 elections.

The intervention of the taskforce was requested by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), to ascertain whether or not the ACCC can accommodate an expansion and still be in keeping with the COVID-19 health ordinance. The interest in expanding is as a result of a slothful recount process, and GECOM wanting to increase the pace so as to stay within the allotted 25 days for the completion of the process.

Following the site visit by the team, GECOM’s Public Relations Officer, Yolanda Ward, told the media that no initial feedback was given by the team, but rather, a report will be prepared and submitted this morning to GECOM’s Chair. She said that even though no decision was made by the commission as to the number of workstations to be established, they still identified other areas in which they can save time.

“Based on the guidelines and further discussions at the commission meeting today, we will be able to concretise the number of workstations to be established and the methodology going forward, as to how these workstations will be allotted for the duration of this exercise…Just after the site visit by the task orce, the commission met and was exploring some of the possibilities as to how some of the time spent on any box, could be reduced. And we were examining some of these things on the check list. We have decided in cases where the official list of electors is absent from the box, the folio used by the presiding officer, be used in such an instance. So rather than there being a pause or delay and so on, in the process, to ensure that the process continues, that folio could be used since it will confirm the total as compared to the official list of electors,” Ward explained.

She said that as part of this process, there is a ballot box check list and the commission was also exploring how to reduce the time spent on going through that checklist. It was also mentioned that a few envelopes will no longer be checked, which have no relevance to the count or process as a means of minimising time.

A meeting was to be had with the commission and the parties on Thursday, but that was no longer necessary, as the parties said that some of their issues were already resolved but they’re waiting to see the decision that will be made today. Adding to what Ward had shared with the media, GECOM’s Commissioner, Vincent Alexander said that there is a possibility that the added amount of new stations will be six, but is still to be confirmed and approved by the COVID-19 taskforce.

“[The] COVID-19 [taskforce] is now to return the report and the feasibility of those sites, when that report is returned, then taking into consideration, security advice, and availability of the relevant equipment, then a decision will be made. That notwithstanding, the commission met and again reviewed certain aspects of the operation and has decided that we will not wait on the COVID-19 [taskforce] report to operationalise the things which we think can be done. And so for example, we looked at the checklist and determined that the last three items were not required, so there is no need for us to go to those envelopes to do checks. Whether the seal is returned or not, it has no impact on the count,” Alexander echoed.

He said that in addition to COVID-19 and these prospective locations for the new site, he is also concerned about security. “…there is the matter of security. For example, on the southern side of the building there’s an entrance which allows the ballot boxes to come in and to be delivered to the various workstations. And there was a suggestion that the area there could be used as a workstation. And I think security is important so I wouldn’t recommend there,” Alexander said.
However, he also noted that he is open to the advice of the people who are experts in that area. “I’m inclined to work with what is proposed by the people who are qualified,” he said.