–presidential contender alleges

THE Guyana Press Association (GPA) finds itself embroiled in a deepening crisis as more accusations of election rigging and a disregard for principles of decency, transparency, accountability, and fairness emerge.

Neil Marks, Editor of News Room and a candidate for the GPA presidency, has brought these alarming revelations to light in a candid letter against the controversial GPA, which is supposed to be the custodian of journalistic integrity.

Marks, who previously served as GPA President, expressed his disbelief and disappointment at the organisation he once trusted to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability.
In his letter to the media, he highlighted the absence of a challenger in the past two elections, which eliminated the need for voting and, consequently, the disclosure of a list of eligible voters.
However, for the May 14 election, Marks raised several concerns about the lack of transparency in the process.

He requested access to a list of eligible voters, considering the incumbent president, Nazima Raghubir, was seeking re-election alongside other members of the executive.
“On May 8, 2023, I emailed the remaining members of the executive to see a copy of a list of eligible voters. I believe this was a fair request, given that Ms Raghubir was seeking re-election and that the Secretary, Mrs Svetlana Marshall-Abrams, and the two others on the Executive – Mr Rawle Toney and Mr Denis Chabrol – were open to nomination to once again sit on the Executive of the GPA,” Marks said.

To his dismay, his request was met with dismissive responses, with Raghubir stating that the voting process had been conventionally conducted for decades without the need for a list.
Days later, Marks received a reply from GPA Secretary Svetlana Marshall-Abrams, stating that the list of eligible voters would only be read out at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) to all present members.

Marks argued that this approach was unfair, as he and other potential candidates would be unable to object or scrutinise the list due to the executive’s control over it and their own candidacy for re-election.

Suspicions of a padded voter list arose when Marks questioned the handling of new membership applications. He discovered that some media houses were bypassed while others were selectively targetted for new sign-ups, potentially skewing the voting outcomes.

Moreover, the Secretary’s admission that she had personally signed up members on the spot, without any vetting process or committee involvement, further raised doubts about the integrity of the electoral process.

“Days before the elections, the editors of 10 media houses sent a petition for a release of the voters’ list and they were rejected. It was members of these media houses who were denied membership,” he said in the letter.

Despite pleas for transparency and compromises from Marks and the editors of ten media houses, their requests for the release of the voters’ list were rejected.

Two days before the elections, Marks said he made a final attempt to address the concerns by proposing options to ensure fairness, including publishing the list, accepting applications on the day of the AGM, and extending the deadline for processing new members’ applications. Regrettably, his efforts were met with silence from the executive.

“I received no reply. The list of “eligible” voters was only read out to the AGM just before the start of nominations. No copies were shared with anyone, even at that late moment, to make objections. In any case, the Returning Officer, Ronald Burch-Smith, had no powers to accept objections and strike anyone off the list. After I raised concerns, he did allow me to take photographs of the pages he was given with the members who could vote,” he said.

During the AGM, Marks took photographs of the list, revealing multiple individuals who did not meet the constitutional requirements for GPA membership and voting.
Among those listed were individuals holding occupations unrelated to journalism, former editors no longer involved in news dissemination, and individuals who had recently entered the media field, failing to fulfill the three-year eligibility criterion.

“Under the constitutional provisions, their jobs make them ineligible for voting under the GPA constitution. With the photos of the list now with me, I quickly could see others who do not qualify – a taxi driver, a farmer, and a handyman. On the list too were former editors and media workers who no longer work or contribute to news gathering or dissemination in any way. There were certainly many who recently started working in the media and did not meet the three-year requirement to vote.

“So, there is no other way to say it – the GPA elections were rigged,” Marks said.

Marks’s scathing letter laments the damage caused to the organisation’s reputation, particularly its ability to champion democracy, transparency, and accountability.
On Sunday last, Raghubir was reelected as president, Rawle Toney was declared Vice President and Svetlana Marshall as Treasurer.

Other executive members include Ariana Gordon as Secretary and four floor members, Denis Chabrol, Alva Solomon, Iva Wharton and Nyjel Fraser. Marcelle Fowler was co-opted into the Executive.