–distract from sordid history of elections rigging, Jagdeo says

WHILE grilling the Opposition for its unconstitutional proposals, People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo supported Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh’s ruling against the introduction of biometric fingerprint identification in the upcoming elections.

During a press conference at Freedom House on Thursday, he highlighted the irony of the People’s National Congress/ Reform (PNC/R)-led A Partnership for National Unity (APNU)’s campaign for biometrics given the party’s history of elections rigging or attempts to subvert the will of the voters.

“I think it’s a clever attempt to get away from their past and the recent past I’m speaking of, where they sought to rig the elections,” the General Secretary said.

Jagdeo pointed out that the topic of biometrics is nothing new as it was collected in the past.

Delving into the sole reason why the opposition is pushing for biometrics, he stated that they want to prevent people from voting, an act which is unconstitutional.

He explained: “And it’s not about biometrics or no biometrics, it is what they want to use it for and that is what they spoke of… They want to use it for an unconstitutional purpose which is to prevent people from voting, for example if you show up at the polling station and there is some glitch in the system then you lose your right to vote.”

“You cannot lose your right to vote. That has been decided on, sometime before,” he firmly stated.

Jagdeo said the Opposition knows they are going to lose the elections, hence their constant tactics.

“The plot is clear… Even from Opposition, their mind is crooked around stealing elections,” he said.

The General Secretary also said that GECOM’s Chairperson has been consistent in her rulings.

PPP/C-nominated GECOM Commissioner and former Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee, had described the ruling as “justiciable, practical, and realistic.”

The debate over incorporating biometric technology into the electoral process has been one of the most contentious issues in recent months.

In a recent opinion piece, Rohee said that discussions on the topic began after GECOM’s Chief Election Officer (CEO), Vishnu Persaud presented a feasibility study in May, 2024, titled ‘Feasibility Study for Introducing Digital Fingerprint Capture during Registration and Biometric Fingerprint Identification for Voting in Guyana.’

According to him, the study outlined potential advantages, challenges, and legal implications of adopting such a system.

From the outset of discussions in October, 2024, Commissioner Rohee said he expressed firm opposition to the proposal.

Speaking at a commission meeting, Rohee recalled arguing that the divide within GECOM over biometrics mirrored a broader societal split, with opposing political parties taking entrenched positions on the issue.

He said that GECOM, as a neutral body, must ensure any decisions on electoral reforms are based on thorough analysis and not partisan pressures.

Rohee highlighted: ‘The challenges of using biometric fingerprint identification for voter identification and privacy concerns; the political considerations; the disadvantages of fingerprint recognition and predictable difficulties; the trust and confidence factors for GECOM and the experiences of several countries who rejected the use of biometric fingerprint identification for voting at national election.”

He noted that he also pointed out that introducing biometrics would require constitutional amendments, a lengthy and complex process.

After months of deliberations, Rohee stated that Justice Singh delivered a comprehensive ruling on the matter, citing logistical and temporal challenges.