The opposition PPP last night condemned the proposed limiting of hours for the recount of votes from the March 2nd general elections by de facto Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and also flayed his contention that observers entering the country for the process will have to be quarantined for two weeks.
GECOM was told by Nagamootoo on Saturday that its recount of the votes for the general elections must not extend into the COVID-19 curfew period from 6 pm to 6 am and that any persons coming into the country for the process would have to be quarantined for two weeks at a government institution.
Nagamootoo’s disclosure of his advice to GECOM Chair Claudette Singh was contained in his `My Turn’ column in yesterday’s state-owned Guyana Chronicle. Given the importance of the information it is unclear why it was revealed first in his column and not by way of a press release to the public from the National Covid-19 Task Force (NCTF) or from GECOM.
The de facto PM’s response also revealed information that the GECOM Chair has not disclosed to the public, to wit, that she is proposing a 10-hour work schedule for the recount. On Friday, Singh disclosed that she was proposing no more than 10 workstations for the recount but said nothing else about other arrangements including the duration of the count. Critics had been calling for 24/7 counting or at least a 16-hour workday to expedite the recount.
The section of Nagamootoo’s column dealing with Singh’s request stated:
“So, it should surprise no law-abiding citizen that GECOM’S Chairman, Madam Claudette Singh, a retired Justice of Appeal, should request the NCTF to seek guidance regarding:-
“(a) time at which the daily recount exercise should end;
(b) number of persons who should be safely accommodated at the recount venue at the same time; and
“(c) required protocols for quarantining persons coming from abroad, and who were invited to be part of the recount process.
“Yesterday (Saturday), I provided the Chairman of GECOM with the advice of the task force, as follows:-
“1. That GECOM adjusts its desired 10-hour work schedule within the daily 6am to 5pm (06:00hr to 17:00hrs) time-frame, and does not extend it into the curfew period (18:00hrs to 06:00hrs).
“2. That all persons who are permitted special entry into Guyana during this period when our air space is closed to in-bound passengers, must submit themselves to being quarantined at a government institution for a period of 14 days.
“3. That GECOM allows four technical experts of the Public Health Emergency Opera-tions Centre (PHEOC) to conduct a site visit to assess whether distancing arrangements conform to the pandemic guidelines and the published Order”.
Last night the PPP pummelled Nagamootoo’s response to Singh.
It charged that Nagamootoo has a vested interest in frustrating the recount process.
“The direction that the exercise should end at 5:00PM daily, is simply nonsensical. Tens of thousands of persons throughout the country are permitted to work after 6:00PM. This recount is arguably the most important exercise in this country and therefore, its speedy conclusion must be accorded every priority. There is simply no sensible reason why the exercise should not proceed beyond 5:00PM daily.
“As regards persons coming into the country for the exercise, Nagamootoo’s recommendation that they must be quarantined for two weeks, is even more preposterous. Once tested negative for COVID-19, there is absolutely no need for quarantine”, the PPP said.
It also berated Nagamootoo for the manner in which the information was released.
“We call upon the Chairperson of GECOM to reject these outrageous directives by Nagamootoo and to proceed to make arrangements for the recount to be done speedily”, the PPP added.
The Leader of the Liberty and Justice Party Lenox Shuman yesterday also condemned the Nagamootoo statement.
“The 14-day quarantine is borderline insanity. A test can be administered and results returned in 24 hours thus a 24 hours quarantine is realistic.
Alternatively, the test can be administered in their home country and they can present the results on arrival thus rendering any quarantine redundant.
“There have been ample opportunities to exceed expectations and take the high road, such has not happened. “Where `no more’ than 10 workstations was stared, we can expect the COVID task force and the GECOM to settle for far less and work at a sloth’s pace day in and day out – 156 (days) is now a distinct possibility”, Shuman said in a Facebook post.
Jeopardize
Opposition-appointed GECOM Commissioner Sase Gunraj also excoriated the decision by Nagamootoo.
“Nagamootoo was always expected to jeopardize the process. He didn’t surprise the nation.
Maybe he is feeling left out from all of the ‘forces’ slated for sanctions and opted to join the queue, nay…opt to run to the head of the line”, Gunraj said in a Facebook post.
He also lamented that he was informed of the content of the GECOM Chair’s letter to Nagamootoo via a newspaper article.
While recognising the seriousness of COVID-19 Gunraj asked if the resolution of the electoral process by providing credible results to the nation wasn’t equally important?
He added that he always believed that efforts would be made to stymie CARICOM’s involvement in observation and oversight of the recount and that the quarantine decision accords with this.
In a statement yesterday, attorney and PPP executive Anil Nandlall said that the GECOM Chairperson “placed the cart before the horse when she sought guidance from the COVID-19 Taskforce. There is, absolutely, no obligation on GECOM to seek approval from any agency, in relation to the discharge of its functions regarding elections. The March 2, 2020 elections are still ongoing. It will only lawfully conclude when the final results are declared pursuant the Representation of the People Act and a President is declared elected under Article 177 of the Constitution. GECOM remains, exclusively, in charge of the process until this is accomplished”.
He added: “It must be clear to anyone with common sense that the directions given by the (Nagamootoo) Taskforce are intended to discourage International Observers, including the CARICOM High-Level Team, from returning to Guyana to observe the recount, and ultimately, to ultimately thwart the process. I urge the chairperson to unconditionally reject those directions. I am not unmindful of public health environment. However, GECOM must establish its own protocols, like the Judiciary. In so doing, it must be guided by the overriding principle that the recount must be concluded with every convenient speed. In relation to the persons travelling to Guyana for the recount, they can be tested in their home countries and tested upon arrival in Guyana. It is not rocket science. The Chairperson can easily craft her own COVID-19 guidelines. This is what the Consti-tution contemplates”.
