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The AFC, as one of the contesting political parties in the upcoming General and Regional Elections, holds the view that free and fair elections require adoption of the following by GECOM and its Secretariat under the control of the Chief Elections Officer (CEO): -
- The ability of every voter on elections day to be able to cast a secret ballot in circumstances free from fear and intimidation. The CEO and his staff, in keeping with the Constitution and the relevant electoral laws shoulder the responsibility for making arrangements for efficient polling, counting of ballots, tabulating of votes and declaring the results.
- Respect for the meaning of article 161B of the Constitution which limits the role of political parties and their nominees in the conduct of elections, and which specifically precludes them from any form of active management of the electoral process. Contesting political parties must not be allowed to undertake responsibilities legally assigned to the Chief Election Officer who is required to create a level playing field for all contesting political parties without interference or coercion. Such interference has to date undermined the electoral process, and created unnecessary tension, fear and distrust. Our history of a divided politics which generally permits unscrupulous politicians to play on elections-time emotions and fears in furtherance of their own interests will only derail free and fair elections. It is the objective of the AFC to prevent this.
- Upholding firmly the principle of equality among contesting political parties must by necessity mean the dismissal of the categorization being peddled I some quarters and which seeks to differentiate between “parliamentary parties” and “non-parliamentary parties” as if the former possessed more entitlements than the latter in an elections race. Equal treatment of all contesting parties therefore; require that no party be seen to have an advantage over any other. All Contesting parties should have equitable access to the state-owned mass media and all other media outlets and should agree on an Electoral Code that sets agreed standards for mobilising financial and other resources; should adopt standards of behaviour for candidates; should meet all existing legal post-elections reporting requirements and that should determine specific consequences for violating all agreed standards
- The delivery by GECOM of elections where the principle of “one man, one vote” is truly a reality; where disenfranchisement of eligible voters is a thing of the past and where there is no multiple voting or potential for stuffing of ballot boxes after the close of poll.
It is therefore, on the basis of these principles that the AFC sees the verification of the Official List of Electors (OLE) as a tool, exclusively in the hands of the CEO and his technical personnel in the GECOM Secretariat to be used for the purpose of delivering an acceptable Preliminary Voters List so certified by him.
Based on the Guyanese elections experience and those in other countries, the contesting parties need to have a frank discussion on the ways in which the vote can be manipulated; then the GECOM Secretariat should be asked to indicate how these will be dealt with to ensure one man, one vote.
The AFC feels that all fears and concerns surrounding elections could be allayed through negotiation between GECOM and the contesting parties and therefore recommends the use of facilitation by an institution such as the OAS or any other credible institution to settle this issue.
The AFC reserves the right to express legitimate concerns as regards the slippages which have occurred to GECOM’s timelines and opines that the public needs to know why this happened and what is being done to remedy the situation.
In the meantime, other important questions pertaining to the state of readiness of GECOM and its Secretariat ought to be addressed and the public be informed about. These questions include the following:
- What is the process by which an acceptable list of electors will be compiled for the elections?
- How, when and through what process will recruitment and training of approximately 15,000 electoral officials needed for the conduct of elections be accomplished?
- How and when will the identification of the 2,000-odd polling places needed to be found that are adequately provisioned with sanitary facilities, electricity, etc. be accomplished?
- When and through what procedure will the printing and placement of the PVL for distribution around the country be accomplished?
- What tested system is in place for communicating results of the elections in the various divisions within a reasonable time (by the day’s end of poll) given the collapse of the cellular phone system in the last elections and the protests, confusion, violence that ensued when announcement of the elections results were extensively delayed in the previous elections?
- What options are being considered by GECOM to deal with the various forms of multi-registrants if found at the conclusion of the Jamaican Biometrics System being employed for that purpose?
- When, how and where will ballots be printed for the elections?
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