GECOM has been told by de facto Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo that its recount of the votes for March 2nd general elections must not extend into the curfew period 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 decision as Head of the National Coronavirus Task Force (NCTF) will likely lead to a further delay of the long-awaited recount of the votes where it has been alleged that officials in GECOM are attempting to rig the elections in favour of the incumbent APNU+AFC.
Nagamootoo’s disclosure of his advice to GECOM Chair Claudette Singh was contained in his `My Turn’ column in today’s state-owned Guyana Chronicle. Given the importance of the information it is unclear why it has been revealed first in his column and not by way of a press release to the public from the NCTF.
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. On Friday, Singh disclosed that she was proposing 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.
The section of Nagamootoo’s column dealing with Singh’s request follows:
“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, 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 Operations Centre (PHEOC) to conduct a site visit to assess whether distancing arrangements conform to the pandemic guidelines and the published Order”.
