Dear Editor,
In an editorial on 12/12/2022 Stabroek News delivered a blistering rebuke of the Chairman of GECOM which caused me to watch several YouTube videos of the evidence presented to the COI. I noted that the most serious claims in the editorial either did not accord with or have been refuted by the evidence.
The salient point in the editorial was that “At the height of the elections shenanigans in March of 2020” the Chairman “failed comprehensively to execute her mandate.” That opinion was based on the false premise that on March 5, 2020 Justice Singh “was found ensconced in a room on the third floor of the Ashmins building while the District Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo was ruthlessly declaring fake results in favour of the incumbent APNU+AFC to the horror of bystanders.” The editorial also claimed that the Chairman was aware of Mingo’s actions and was “completely unmoved, preferring to remain hidden away in the company of perhaps a dozen persons whose business in proximity to the GECOM Chair remains unclear.”
None of these claims are supported by the evidence.
The editorial appears to be conflating Mingo’s declaration with an incident on the 3rd floor later that same day. Those are two unrelated events that occurred at different times and on different floors of the Ashmin building on March 5. The Mingo incident occurred around 2 pm on the 2nd floor while the other occurred later that afternoon on the 3rd floor.
Commissioner Gunraj and the Chairman told the COI that on March 5th they were in a meeting with the other Commissioners on the 2nd floor of the Ashmin building (addressing the unauthorized use of spreadsheets) when they were informed by the Canadian High Commissioner that Mingo was making a declaration. Contrary to the claim that she was “completely unmoved” the evidence revealed that she was “shocked and surprise” and that she left the meeting immediately. She explained that there was a furor and the stairs were blocked by the police. She saw Mingo on the landing between the second and third floors but never got close to him. She testified that she intended to take steps to reverse what he had done but was restrained by an injunction that followed.
Much has been made of her subsequent visit to the third floor later that day. She testified that it was a hectic and chaotic day. Aside from Mingo’s actions there was a bomb threat, an injunction, the issue with the use of spreadsheets, an incident involving Minister Cummings, the incident with the server and a heavy police presence in and outside the building. The Chairman testified that she was stressed and feeling unwell and she went up to a room on the third floor of the Ashmin building to collect her thoughts and reflect on everything that happened that day. While she was there she became aware that unknown persons were knocking on and breaking doors looking for her. She did not know who they were and she feared for her life. In a country with a history of post election violence, her fear is not unreasonable and her SOS call to a senior member of the PNC was probably calculated.
The Chairman is a living breathing human being with physical and mental limitations just like the rest of us. She is the manager of her personal health. Her medical record is not in evidence and therefore her statements about her health should not be questioned or trivialized. Her reluctance to elaborate on her claim that she did not know “who to trust” is also understandable. The fact that she is still the Chairman is probably one reason. The only issue here is an apparent conflict between her evidence and the evidence of Dr Kanhai regarding the number and identity of the persons present in the room and that is something that should be explored.
Editor, the question arising from the editorial is whether the Chairman could have done more on March 5th and more importantly whether that would have changed the course of those events. The answer is clearly no. A well oiled rigging machine was at work. Blatant, undisguised rigging was occurring in plain view with cameras rolling and the world watching. If that did not deter the riggers it is hard to imagine anything the Chairman could have said or done that might have had impact on Mingo and company.
Lest we forget, Mingo and Lowenfield ignored orders from the courts and the Commission and pushed ahead with their efforts to deliver the election to APNU/AFC. It took six requests from the Chairman to get Lowenfield to do his job even after the CCJ had ruled on the matter. With that in mind it is hard to imagine a scenario where anyone other than perhaps David Granger could have stopped them and he did not.
The point here is that the rigging was not a spontaneous event. Mingo did not act on a whim. APNU/AFC knew it had lost the election and (with help from their good friends at GECOM) attempted to exploit pinholes in the election laws to remain in office. The plan was pellucid in its entirety. There would be a false declaration in Region 4. The CEO will use that knowingly false declaration to issue his report at which point (they believed) the Chairman will be bound by precedent to vote with the APNU/AFC Commissioners to certify the results. The aim was to throw the election into the court system to get a few more bites at the cherry. They were aware and counting on the fact that election petitions can be bogged down in the court system for more than five years. Minister Ramjattan argued that Mingo’s fraudulent declaration must be given a “presumption of regularity” until it is rebutted. He explained that “It is rebutted after an election ends and is completed by a swearing in of a President, and then by a Court with jurisdiction to hear witnesses, open and recount boxes…the whole gamut.” (Demerara Waves March 19. 2020)
On the claim that the Chairman “ failed” to execute her mandate the COI heard that Commissioner Corbin informed the Chairman that she did not have the authority to intervene directly when Mingo resorted to spreadsheets and a study of organizational structure and chain of command would tend to support his assessment. Commissioner Gunraj said as much when he testified that decisions taken by the Commissioners must flow through the Chief Election Officer for implementation.
The Chairman and the Commissioners had no role in the day to day management of the GECOM staff. That responsibility and the requisite authority resided with the CEO and by extension, his deputy Roxanne Myers. They are ultimately accountable for Mingo’s actions and what they did or didn’t do is a better question.
Justice Singh did not seek that position as Chairman of GECOM. She may not have been the ideal candidate but she was the best one the parties could agree on. She responded as any civic minded Guyanese should. She is a retired judge who clearly did not bring any significant management experience or training to the position. Few (if any) major corporations would hire someone with her background to head their organization. Every job has a learning curve. The Chairman was relatively new in that position. She was in office for barely 6 months and that was the first election since she took office in late August 2020. The election went smoothly until she was faced with an unprecedented situation in Region 4. She is not perfect and she certainly was not a good witness on her own behalf. But she deserves fairness.
Yours truly
Milton Jagannath
Editor-in-Chief’s note: Stabroek News stands by its editorial.
