Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) CEO Fern Narcis-Scope said dealing with complaints by political parties was part of the job and the organisation did not feel pressured or rattled by it.
Narcis-Scope made the statement in response to the United National Congress (UNC) sending around 28 letters of complaint to the EBC on election day on April 28. She told Newsday the EBC responded to all except one. There were also two letters from the Progressive Empowerment Party before the close of the polls.
“As the issues came in, we investigated each one and dealt with them on a case-by-case basis. There were some things that had some merit, there were some things that did not. Nevertheless, we dealt with them.”
She said no other party wrote them to express any concerns during the day.
“It’s part and parcel of the job. Political parties are one of our major stakeholders. They may have issues or concerns with the process, etc, and it’s our responsibility to either educate them or work along side them to resolve any issues. I have no problem with how things have evolved.”
She said voting went fairly smoothly across the country with the only major issue being the arrest of a man in Mt Lambert, which falls in the marginal constituency of St Joseph/Aranguez, who was found with $30,000 in cash. The police were investigating whether the man was linked to election-related offences.
“I think the members of the public who went out to cast their ballots were able to do so, and from the look of it, the turnout may be a little higher than previous elections. But we wait to see when everything comes in to determine if that’s actually so.”
Narcis-Scope added that EBC officers were happy election observers were in the country for the general election. She looked forward to hearing what they thought about the EBC’s process and any recommendations they had to better the democratic process.
She said several of the EBC officers had previously served on missions in other countries and understand the election observation process and the methods they use. She personally was head of mission on two Caricom missions.
“We are happy to work with some of the few sets of persons in the industry who understand what election management is all about. A lot of people are actors in the process but they don’t necessarily understand it. So here are people who appreciate what election management is all about, what are some of the nuances, what are some of the challenges while still trying to achieve the highest standard in democracy.”
