BREAKING: PPP’s GECOM Commissioners move for “immediate dismissal” of Lowenfield, Myers, Mingo

Last Updated on Tuesday, 1 June 2021, 16:56 by Denis Chabrol

The People’s Progressive Party’s commissioners on the Guyana Elections Commissioners on Tuesday tabled three motions for the “immediate dismissal” of the Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield; Deputy Chief Elections Officer, Roxanne Myers and the Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo.

The motions are to be debated at a date to be decided.

“Without any lawful authority or proper justification or excuse, the RO deliberately failed, refused and neglected to ascertain the total votes cast in favour of each list in the district by adding up the votes recorded in favour of the list in accordance with the Statements of Poll as is required by the  Section and instead, he whether by himself or those acting with his authority or under his direction, sought to use in the adding up process, figures. vote counts which were not disclosed in and were inconsistent with the figures. vote counts in the Statements of Poll,” states that motion against the Returning Officer which was tabled by Commissioner Manoj Narayan and seconded by his colleague Sase Gunraj.

The trio has been implicated in alleged electoral misdeeds for which they have been charged criminally. In what appeared to be a preemptive argument against contention that those GECOM officers’ fate should first be determine d by the court, Messrs. Narayan and Gunraj said Mr. Mingo should be removed so that Guyanese could again repose confidence in that election management authority. “The RO is currently facing criminal charges being prosecuted by the Guyana Police Force in respect of his numerous infractions of the law and regardless of the outcome of those charges , the Commission must take all necessary steps to restore credibility, transparency , public confidence and public trust in its institution and its constitutional and statutory mandate,” the mover and seconder of the motion say.

Almost identical reasons have been advanced in respect of Mr. Lowenfield and Ms. Myers.

The High  Court recently ordered the Supreme Court Registrar to make copies of Statements of Poll and Statements of Recount for dispatch to the Police Commissioner and the Director of Public Prosecutions to assist in several electoral fraud cases.