3 years after 2020 elections: Safeguards will have to be improved on Election Day – AG

…says riggers are still around, society must be vigilant

In addition to the myriad of amendments that have been made to legislation governing the conduct of elections in Guyana, Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, SC, has said that safeguards on Election Day will also have to be improved.
The Attorney General made these comments during a programme to mark the three-year anniversary of the controversies that started to derail the March 2, 2020 elections. As the elections Commission of Inquiry (CoI) has revealed, Ashmins building was ground zero for attempts to rig the elections.
Last year, the Government made changes to the Representation of the People Act (RoPA) at the level of the National Assembly. Nandlall noted that notwithstanding this, systems will have to be improved on Election Day.
“We will have to try as far as possible to improve the safeguards on election day itself. And that is also a work in progress. We have to ensure that there are as many international observers as possible. Because you know we have a problem in Guyana,” Nandlall explained.
“We have people who have an evinced and settled propensity to steal elections. And they are very much around. So, you have to have a heavy international presence. So, these are some of the safeguards that we are working on, to ensure that elections in the future are done democratically, transparently and free and fair.”
The AG acknowledged, however, that even with the best systems and institutions, the integrity of those manning the systems remains critical. He noted that as the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections showed, persons who officiated previous elections without issues can suddenly go rogue.

“You can have the best legal systems. You can have the best systems, the best machinery, the best institutional framework. But if you have miscreants and dishonest people manning the systems, then you will have similar results.”
“So, we also have to look at the quality and calibre of persons who are retained to administer the elections and work in the electoral system. So that’s another wave of initiatives we will have to launch,” Nandlall further said.
Ashmins building had served as the base for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to tabulate the results of Region Four from the General and Regional Elections. Various persons testified during the Elections Commission of Inquiry (CoI), however, that on March 5, 2020, the tabulation was continuously interrupted as attempts were made to derail the process.
Testimony has previously been made during the 2020 Elections CoI that various GECOM officials were insistent on clearing Ashmins building of observers and other stakeholders, particularly GECOM Commissioner Sase Gunraj, during the tabulation process on March 5.
There had even been testimony that heavily armed and rogue Tactical Services Unit (TSU) ranks, who did not answer to Region Four Commander at the time Edgar Thomas, had made an appearance in the building on March 5.
March 5 was also the day that former Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo attempted to make unverified declaration of results for Region Four. In fact, Mingo had faced private criminal charges for this.
Mingo’s declaration, which was subsequently set aside by Chief Justice (acting) Roxane George, was signed by him and then Minister of Health Volda Lawrence – the lone representative to sign from the political parties that contested the elections. The other parties had objected to the declaration after the verification process was not fully complied to by the Returning Officer.
Lawrence was among a number of key figures who had declined to testify during the CoI, despite the testimony that had been given previously. The others included former GECOM Data Clerk Enrique Livan, former GECOM Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield and Mingo.
The same position was adopted by several other GECOM employees who were called to testify before the CoI last December due to pending investigations and criminal charges against them. They cited Article 144 (7) of the Constitution of Guyana, which states: “No person who is tried for a criminal offence shall be compelled to give evidence at the trial.” (G3)