Chief Election Officer cannot alter info -current Chief

Last Updated on Saturday, 5 November 2022, 8:16 by Denis Chabrol

Chief Election Officer Vishnu Persaud displaying his statement that he submitted to  the Commission of Inquiry

The Chief Election Officer of the Guyana Election Commission (GECOM) cannot alter information in the collation of results and other information, according to the incumbent Chief Vishnu Persaud.

“No whatsoever to my knowledge and I must confess, I went back, I reviewed that section before I came to this hearing and there is no such provision,” he said in response to a question by Commissioner of Inquiry, Retired Chancellor of the Judiciary Carl Singh. He asked does the Chief Election Officer have any discretion to alter, delete or ignore any of the information contained in the Form 24 return.

He made known his position on day one of the public hearings of the Commission of Inquiry into the circumstances and events surrounding the controversial March 2020 general elections.

Then Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield had been cited for allegedly removing more than 100,000 votes in the ground that they were not valid. That action had been frowned upon by Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders who had sought to resolve the dispute through a recount of all votes cast.

After a five-month long wait, the People’s Progressive Party was declared the winner of the 2nd March 2020 polls.