Major security breaches at GECOM – PPP now claims

 

By Kurt Campbell

[www.inewsguyana.com] – The ruling Party has taken another swipe at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM); this time alleging that there have been security breaches at the institution.

According to the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), it is concerned with the significant losses of electoral equipment and other material from GECOM; claiming that some 25 cartoons of indelible electoral ink and dozens of black water tanks have gone missing and are unaccounted for.

General Secretary of the PPP, Clement Rohee told reporters this morning (Monday, October 27) that what is even more alarming is that there seems be efforts to keep these breaches from public and stakeholders.

“Covering up breaches could shake the confidence and trust stakeholders have in the GECOM,” Rohee said even as he called on the Commission’s Chairman Dr. Steve Surujbally to provide the full details of the alleged breaches.

He said assurances must also be given that appropriate action will be taken against those found responsible.

“The police must be called in to investigate… for too long equipment and items bought by taxpayers’ money are being declared lost and no one is being held accountable,” Rohee added even as he recalled the incident where several laptop computers were declared missing for which no one has been held accountable.

Rohee used the opportunity to register once more his Party’s disapproval with the appoint of Richard Francios as GECOM’s Public Relations Officer (PRO) and reiterated calls for the withdrawal of his appointment.

“Such position requires absolute neutrality… he has been openly supportive of the Opposition many times… the PPP calls on Guyanese to demand fair and un-bias employment practices by GECOM.”

Meanwhile, when asked if his Party has lost trust in the GECOM Chairman since most, if not all, of the 15 and more issues raised by the Party has not seen the Commission taking any action, Rohee said that is being assessed.

“I’m not saying we have confidence in Surujbally… I am saying that the process out of which he was appointed, the government had to have confidence in him and thus far there has not been anything to make us shift from that position… we are laying issues before him and expect he will take up these matters,” Rohee told reporters.

He said his Party has noted the public statement by the Chairman on all aspects of the electoral process and even lecturing political parties but observed that in all the “media hype” there has been an absence of updates on education of Guyanese on outstanding issues concerning local government elections.

“All we hear is that he needs a window of six months to prepare but absent is GECOM’s road map for the elections.”

He said GECOM must address all issues raised in a frank and open manner.