Financial analyst, Sasenarine Singh yesterday said there was “considered and deliberate” efforts to have votes cast in Region Four during the March 2020 elections declared without any scrutiny and observation.
“It is my considered view today and even then, that yes you are correct,” Singh agreed with Commissioner of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the March 2020 elections, retired Justice Carl Singh yesterday.
Public hearings into the inquiry continued with Sasenarine Singh giving sworn testimony about the events which took place during and after the March 2020 elections.
He also told the CoI that before Region Four Returning Office, Clairmont Mingo declared the results with doctored numbers which showed that APNU+AFC had won, Deputy Chief Election Officer (DCEO), Roxanne Myers played a “lead” role in clearing the Region Four Command Centre which was housed at Ashmins building on High and Hadfield streets, Georgetown.
“My personal thought today…in particular, I think one person was playing a leading role in trying to get less people in the building and that was Miss Roxanne Myers. She made a very determined effort on many occasions to empty the building. Not just one occasion, many occasions,” he told Justice Singh.
Singh was a supernumerary agent of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) for the March 2, 2020 general and regional elections.
In detailing his duties for the CoI, he said these included supervising “clusters” of polling agents and ensuring that concerns of polling agents for all contesting parties were addressed.
Like the previous witnesses, Singh also told the CoI which is headed by retired Justice, Stanley John of Mingo’s attempt to declare the Region Four results although the verification process to reconcile the Statements of Poll (SOPs) was incomplete.
During the wee hours of March 3, 2020, Singh explained that he received a call from Charles Ramson, who was a counting agent for the PPP/C, who asked that he go to Ashmins building where the tabulation and verification of votes for Region Four was being conducted.
Upon his arrival, Singh said the tabulation room was “full” and among those present were GECOM staff, party agents and observers.
After a series of delays in the process which resulted in continued protests and objections by party representatives including himself, Singh told the CoI that Mingo attempted to declare the results for Region Four on March 5, 2020.
“He (Mingo) attempted to declare the results of the entire process…He said that I will now declare the results for District Number Four,” Singh told the CoI.
At this point, he said couldn’t hear anything since the tabulation room became “extremely” loud with protests from observers and party agents.
Senior Counsel, Sophia Chote who is leading evidence in the inquiry, at this point told Singh that the Commission is trying to determine what exactly Mingo said. “I am absolutely sure he said he is going to declare the results,” Singh told Chote.
He said Mingo proceeded to the upper flat of the building where he declared “something”.
Before this, there was a bomb scare. “I was sitting next to the US ambassador and we were chatting and a GECOM officer came in and said that you all have to leave the room because there is a bomb in the building,” Singh recalled.
But before this was done, Singh pointed out that attempts were made by Myers to clear the tabulation room. However, with the tabulation process still incomplete and in their bid to protect election materials including SOPs, party agents and observers refused to leave.
“She (Myers) said ‘y’all get out of the room there is a bomb in the building’…Some people stew their teeth and turn their face on her,” Singh recalled.
Not coming back
Singh also provided the CoI with details on other events which occurred before Mingo declared the results.
The day before he made the declaration, Singh said there was a “rumour” that Mingo had fallen ill.
He recalling being in the tabulation room when he observed Mingo being lifted down the stairs in a wheelchair. He was being taken into an ambulance. “….When I pulled the blind I saw an ambulance and I saw Mr Mingo being assisted into the ambulance,” Singh said.
About ten minutes after, he said Myers returned to the tabulation room with information that Mingo would be back in 45 minutes to recommence the process.
Subsequently, Singh related that the then Chief Election Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield arrived and announced that he would be replacing Mingo with two Deputy Returning Officers (DROs).
At that time, he said Lowenfield said that only DROs from the East Bank of Demerara were accessible to him.
Later the same day, the DROs arrived and the process restarted. But, he said there was a “fundamental” difference.
In fact, he said that the DROs had spreadsheets in their possession, replacing GECOM SOPs which were being used to reconcile their numbers with those of stakeholders.
Upon noticing this, Singh said he began to protest against it. However, he noted that Lowenfield told stakeholders that it is more “administratively efficient” to use spreadsheets so as to deliver the results to the nation in a “timely” manner.
Not only was this new process being used but Singh told the inquiry that copies of the SOPs were not distributed neither did Lowenfield provide any information about the origin of the spreadsheets.
Justice Singh intervened by raising questions as to whether the DROs had time to prepare the spreadsheets. In response, Singh said he has no idea how the spreadsheet was prepared. “I have no idea what was on those spreadsheets,” he told Justice Singh.
He further pointed out that although tabulation of the South Georgetown area, which had started the previous day was incomplete, the DROs began by tabulating votes from the East Bank district where they were from.
Singh told the CoI that he particularly protested that there were 65 SOPs from South Georgetown still to be completed. This, he said was disputed by Myers who claimed that her records showed only 3 SOPs remained.
Singh said Myers asked for the list of the 65 SOPs being referred to and it was presented to her. He added that Myers promised feedback but none was given.
At this point in his testimony, Singh had already requested to revisit his written statement for about the fifth time. At almost every instance, he reminded the CoI that “it has been two years”.
Deflating
Despite protests and objections, Singh told the CoI that the verification process continued with the spreadsheets being used.
He said Lowenfield had however made a commitment that if there were any discrepancies, he would “personally” investigate.
As the DROs tabulated the East Bank district, Singh said he was documenting the numbers during which he noticed 17 out of 21 numbers from the SOPs were “materially” different.
The party with the “biggest” loss was the PPP/C, he noted. “What was happening was that they were deflating everybody’s numbers except the APNU+AFC,” Singh said.
This resulted in “loud” protests with calls for the process to be discontinued and restarted using the initial process which involved the use of SOPs. “Where they showed the original SOPs in possession of GECOM and compared it with the SOPs the agents had,” Singh said.
Eventually, Singh said the process stopped. He said lawyers who were present confronted Lowenfield and there was a “long, detailed” discussion for verification to continue using the earlier method.
According to Singh, Lowenfield agreed. “He basically said we are going to revert back to the original process that was started at the inception of the verification process which was comparing GECOM’s original SOPs with the copy of the SOPs that were distributed to the stakeholders,” Singh told the CoI.
Steal the elections
Days after this, Singh told the CoI that it was the now Attorney General, Anil Nandlall who told him “this is it. They have decided to steal the elections”.
As such, he said Nandlall advised him to leave.
By this time, the court was already involved and Mingo was served with an order.
Singh recalled that on March 12, 2020, he received a call from Vickram Bharrat who asked that he come to Ashmins building.
Upon arrival, he said the building was barricaded and there was a heavy police presence.
Eventually, Singh said he managed to enter the building when he learnt that the tabulation room was moved to another area. “It was a replica of what we had in the other room…at the other part of the building,” he said. Among those present were Mingo and Myers.
Shortly after, he said Mingo announced that there was a court order and the process will recommence with him implementing the instructions given in the order.
But while the process had recommenced, the numbers were still not corresponding.
Fast forward to two days later, Singh recalled that he learnt that the process was moved to GECOM Headquarters at Kingston, Georgetown. “There you had a chalkboard like you have a school…There was a white sheet,” he said.
In detailing what was done there, Singh told Chote that SOPs were being scanned. However, he noted that they had no serial number. “It was just a paper looking like SOP but there was no serial number,” he said.
In fact, he noted that he couldn’t see anything since the numbers were being called at a “rapid” pace.
According to Singh, the now Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn stood up and complained about the process. But although Benn asked for the process to be “slowed down” for observers to compare the images on the screen, his request was ignored, Singh told the CoI.
Subsequently, Singh said he received another call that there is “no intention” to fix the issue and he left.
He said he later heard on the radio that a declaration was made.
As of yesterday, a total of nine witnesses have appeared before the inquiry to give evidence.
The Secretary to the CoI yesterday announced that the inquiry will recommence on Monday, November 28th at 9am.
According to their Terms of Reference for the CoI, the Commissioners are to inquire into and report upon the relevant circumstances and events leading up to, and the procedures following, the Regional and General Elections held in Guyana on the 2nd day of March 2020. The investigation is not limited to, but includes the counting, ascertainment and tabulation of votes polled and the public declaration of those results by the Returning Officer of Electoral District No. 4 and other election officers, as prescribed by the Representation of the People Act. The three Commissioners will also examine what attempts, if any, were made to obstruct, frustrate, subvert and prevent the counting, ascertainment and tabulation of votes polled and a declaration of the true results of Electoral District No. 4 as prescribed by the law, and by whom.
