In a move it says is aimed at guaranteeing transparency at polling stations on Election Day, the main opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), has confirmed that it will field polling agents in all polling stations across the country.
This was confirmed by the Presidential Candidate of the APNU, Aubrey Norton, during his weekly news conference on Friday.
“So far, we have prepared polling agents for all polling stations across the country,” Norton said, adding that the party has a contingency plan in place should any of their polling agents be unable to execute their duties on Election Day due to illness.
“If you are aware of what happens on polling day, somebody might get sick or something. What we do is have a backup to replace them,” he added.
The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has not yet announced how many polling stations will be established for the 1 September polls.
The practice of having polling agents for political parties at polling stations is aimed at protecting the integrity of polling day activities, including voting and the counting of ballots.
At polling stations on Election Day, a voter enters the polling station and presents their identification (ID) card to confirm their identity before voting. In the absence of an ID card, the presiding officer in the polling station would confirm the identity of the voter using a folio containing the details of all voters listed to vote at that polling station. The voter without an ID would then be asked to take an Oath of Identity, after which they may be allowed to vote if the presiding officer is satisfied that they have met all the requirements.
This process is carried out in the presence of polling agents of all political parties represented at the polling station, as well as staff of GECOM.
At the news conference, Norton also walked back unsubstantiated claims made by a representative of his party that there was “criminal collusion” by their polling agents in 2020, which led to a victory for the People’s Progressive Party (PPP).
When asked by a reporter how the APNU would vet its polling agents this year in light of the accusations made against them in 2020, Norton stated: “At no stage did we accuse polling agents of what you are suggesting.”
In its post-election report in 2020, the Commonwealth Election Observer Group, led by the late Rt Hon Owen Arthur, former Prime Minister of Barbados, concluded that election day activities were “transparent”.
“…polling was generally conducted in an orderly, transparent, and largely peaceful environment, and the closing procedures were, on the whole, well managed. Moreover, the counts at polling stations were generally well conducted and transparent,” the Observer Group stated in its report.
Meanwhile, GECOM, in a recent statement, warned against vote-buying, which one party, led by US-sanctioned businessman Azruddin Mohamed, has already been accused of.
Although GECOM will be permitting voters to keep their mobile phones with them while in polling stations, the elections regulatory body has warned electors and political parties that it is a criminal offence to buy votes.
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