The national conversation, in recent days, has turned to the decision by GECOM Chairperson, Justice (retired) Claudette Singh to have removed from the Official List of Electors (OLE) some 20,000 Guyanese who did not uplift their National Identification Cards. The decision, which so far, has not been denied by the Chairperson, has serious implications, we believe, for our democratic culture and our citizens’ right to franchise.
While, the Chairperson has committed to ensuring that those in question will be contacted through several means, there is really no guarantee that the information will reach them in time or even reach them at all. The decision to strike out these eligible, registered, voters and thus deny them the opportunity to cast their vote in the upcoming elections, it appears, is contrary to the legislation covering the conduct of elections and registration of voters. Just recently Chief Justice (acting) Roxanne George-Wiltshire, in a decision regarding the conduct of house-to-house registration, laid out clearly the mechanism by which voters could be removed from the National Register of Registrants (NRR) which is the basis for the OLE. The non-receipt of ID cards was not one of those grounds.
Moreover, it appears, that the Chairperson’s decision goes against her ruling she made in the infamous Esther Pereira matter. As is well-known, then Justice Singh ruled that the requirement of a Voters Identification Card then was a means of disenfranchisement. It goes, by that logic, to remove registered voters because they failed to uplift their ID cards is tantamount to obstructing their right to expressing their franchise. This reality was recognized by the Elections Commission which, for past elections, has allowed eligible voters to cast ballots though they were not in possession of their ID cards.
In recent days, the comments of former GECOM Chairman, Dr Steve Surujballi surfaced. In that article which goes back to 2011, Dr Surujballi lamented that many persons did not uplift their ID cards but he pointed out that this did not prevent them from casting their votes if they so wished. The Federation has seen certain individuals, who it could be argued have a biased position, suggesting, without any real justification, thatthe persons concerned couldbe the basis to tarnish the credibility of the elections. At the same time, given our sordid history of compromised elections, it could well be contended that the removal of valid voters could be another means to alter the electoral result.
This latest maneuver of sorts comes just as the electoral body recently disclosed that the ongoing Claims and Objections exercise has seen but a handful of objections being lodged. This reality, we should not forget, followed loud and boisterous claims that the voters list had some 200,000 ineligible voters. Whether the decision to remove those who did not collect their ID cards is an attempt to justify the spurious claims of a bloated list could only be seen as an act of futility.The FITUG has also heard that the apparent decision could be the means to spur judicial intervention to ascertain its legality. This, of course, could well affect the electoral timeline. We sincerely hope this is not the case given the anxiety that has already gripped the nation.
At this time, we of the FITUG cannot understand the rational basis for the decision. Indeed, as we have been hearing over the last few days, this is a new issue. While we urge those who are yet to uplift their ID cards to do so at this time, we, at the same time, cannot sit idly and recognize that eligible Guyanese may well be prevented from voting because of this new issue. Again, we remind that the right of all Guyanese to vote emanated from the Trade Union Movement and was later embraced by the political movement.
