will be considered a DISGRACE!!!
Claudette Singh: A nation’s limitless capacity to absorb deceptions
On August 2, exactly five months after the March 2 election, GECOM accepted the results of the voting process when chairperson, Claudette Singh, accepted the CARICOM-observed recount. When you look at the time span, your mind turns to the query, why five months and not five days?
The answer to that lies in the person of Singh. She should not be given credit for saving Guyana. She did not. For five months, this nation was sitting on a volcano and on August 2 when the eruption failed to burst asunder, expected praise poured in for Singh. The question cannot be evaded by those who keep praising Singh from August 2 onwards – why five months?
The history of the election commissions in Guyana is the story of rigged elections under Presidents Forbes Burnham and Desmond Hoyte. By an Act of Parliament in 1968, the independent election commission was brought under the aegis of the Ministry of Home Affairs. From there on, the chairmen were appointed by Burnham. Interestingly, two of the commission’s chairmen who participated in rigging each national election for Burnham were knighted and both were High Court judges – Donald Jackson and Harold Bollers.
The new shape of the election commission in 1990 became an article in the constitution after Cheddi Jagan and Hoyte agreed to what is now known as the Carter-Price mechanism in which the chairman would be a nominee of the opposition leader with concurrence from the president.
From 1992, the chairman of the election commission performed credibly and satisfactorily until we reached the unacceptable deportment of Singh in 2020. All previous chairmen were never subjected to the kind of criticism from the international society and the Guyanese society as Singh was. There were two slight departures. In 1997, the PNC claimed the election was rigged and harassed Chairman Doodnauth Singh. A Caricom team did a forensic audit which proved the PNC’s accusation was wrong. Then after the 2015 election, the PPP asked for the resignation of Steve Surujbally. But in both elections, the denunciations that greeted Singh in 2020 did not occur.
Was Singh’s conduct in 2020 vastly different from what took place in 1992, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2011 and 2015? The answer is yes. The 2020 election almost devastated the very fabric of Guyanese society because Singh acted unprofessionally and showed immense insensitivity to what GECOM was doing. Looking back on the day of March 4 when the Region 4 Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo, adopted outrageous rigging methods, to the final curtain, could the researcher indict Singh for unacceptable conduct? My answer is yes.
Mingo began to use fraudulent figures which the 10 opposition parties, the three PPP GECOM commissioners and international observers objected to. Singh did not intervene. He continued with his depraved injections and on Thursday, March 5, announced the fictitious Region 4 tabulation on which, Keith Lowenfield, the Chief Elections Officer (CEO), acted and on March 6 summoned a GECOM meeting for the next day to declare an APNU+AFC victory.
Up to that point Singh did not intervene. Granger was not sworn in on Sunday, March 8 because the Chief Justice injuncted Mingo, ordering him to use the official Statements of Poll to conclude Region’s 4 tabulation. History should be recorded as Singh allowing for a David Granger swearing in that was illegal.
From March 4, onwards, Singh not only did not intervene but avoided press conferences and was involved in a bizarre incident in which she was locked in a room for hours at the GECOM’s command centre with only the Deputy CEO, Roxanne Myers, having the authority to prevent others from entering the room. She emerged from her self-imposed exile with cynical smiles as she entered her car. When contacted by persons close to her, she told them, she could not stop the CEO because “my hands are tied” (her words). That was in fact misleading.
Space has run out so we have to answer the question why she accepted the recount numbers and why she instructed the CEO to produce those numbers. My take is that three things happened to Singh. First, some powerful person or persons spoke to her about international criminal charges she could face in terms of international treaties Guyana signed on rights and freedoms.
Secondly, she probably felt scared about the personal affects the financial and visa sanctions would bring. Thirdly, I think she was heavily weighed down by the ocean of relentless absurdities, asininities, immoralities, impossibilities and notorieties of the past five months. There is only so much a normal mind can endure. In the end, she broke and did in August what she should have done in March. She is not a hero.
Space has run out so we have to answer the question why she accepted the recount numbers and why she instructed the CEO to produce those numbers. My take is that three things happened to Singh. First, some powerful person or persons spoke to her about international criminal charges she could face in terms of international treaties Guyana signed on rights and freedoms.
Secondly, she probably felt scared about the personal affects the financial and visa sanctions would bring. Thirdly, I think she was heavily weighed down by the ocean of relentless absurdities, asininities, immoralities, impossibilities and notorieties of the past five months. There is only so much a normal mind can endure. In the end, she broke and did in August what she should have done in March. She is not a hero.
I wondered about this myself
I posted over at Hoopla about a certain phone call she received and watch for the turn of events, so said so done, but she tried to pull a 360 on the day of the declaration, but BJ out smart her, when he said to Granger, lets have the declaration and we will talk.
Comrade Gilly was in that thread at Hoopla...
I then posted on this site, when she give up the government security and house. their was other security provided for her.
BTW, PPP had their people who mixed with them ( PNC ) and they had no clue. That's how brilliant BJ is.
I cannot disagree with anything that Freddie posited there because the Chairperson did dragged her feet and did not assert that legislative independence everyone claims she has. I think her heart was leaned toward allowing the PNC to steal the elections but several incident of pressure worked against her and the PNC. First she was facing contempt of court when she promised the Chief Justice that she will do a recount if there was dissatisfaction with Mingo's behavior. She could have ordered Mingo to follow the CJ but she punted it hoping she wouldn't have to run with it. Then she allowed the PNC to set the guidelines for the recount as well as delay its progress continuously. Then there was that critical incident when she ordered the secretariat to accept those votes from the EC which the PNC wanted thrown out. My guess was that by that time she was already feeling more pressure from others that the PNC was incapable to imposing on her so she began to look for a hail Mary for the PNC. Even on the last day she still punted hoping that Granger would do something to get blame for the further delay but when he relented she knew that it game was over.
There are a few of her actions that I am grateful for because even if they were done under duress, they still helped to preserve democracy in Guyana.
But look how the PNC turned on her. BOOM OUT had that video almost daring Claudette Singh to get it right even though she was telling Singh to do wrong.
A Power Voice called Claudette Singh before midday Sunday August 2nd and read the Riot Act to her. She was told bluntly enough is enough and ordered to declare the recount results before sundown. The rest is history. One day Wikileaks or similar group will disclose the details. Unless that Power Voice comes forward before. My source is reliable.
HONOUR BEFORE MONEY
While I am grateful that she abided by that Power Voice I still think she would have preferred to allow the PNC to steal the elections.
I knew that something positive was going to happen when Kim Kyte(at the CCJ) showed her frustration and anger after APNU asked for time. The lady was pissed and I thought she might have been instructed by Claudette to ask the court to stop the nonsense.
While I am grateful that she abided by that Power Voice I still think she would have preferred to allow the PNC to steal the elections.
I think if she would have allowed the PNC to take the election, sanctions would have been slapped on her too and she might have been the scum of CARICOM. I thought it was a face-saving decision. Who knows, she might have been promised protection.
2 minutes to midnight she tried to give PNC a way out by asking barat to talk with granja.
But then thankfully the clock struck 12 and it was all over for everyone seeking to deny the people of Guyana their inalienable rights. Democracy was still alive and well in Guyana and hopefully it will remain so forever.
If Claudette Singh had correct Mingo on March 3rd when he commenced his tabulation with the use of fictitious numbers, Guyanese will not suffer 5 months of agony and multiple court cases. There are many questions that will never be answer by GECOM.
If Claudette Singh had correct Mingo on March 3rd when he commenced his tabulation with the use of fictitious numbers, Guyanese will not suffer 5 months of agony and multiple court cases. There are many questions that will never be answer by GECOM.
Exactly. In her heart she desperately wanted to allow the PNC to steal the elections but the fat lady singing wasn't her but someone much more powerful than her. Maybe that person who made that phone call. Up until she allowed those ballot boxes to be included in the tally she was strongly in the PNC huddle. Lets not forget how quickly she reprimanded Sase Gunraj for suggesting what she means when she stood silently about every claim and action made by or on behalf of the PNC. But in teh end she could have still be belligerent which she didn't so I am happy with small mercies.
GECOM needs to be revamped and since Guyanese can't be trusted with that function, they should amend the Constitution so some foreign entity that is truly independent conduct its business.
tHE WOMAN IS A cunt AND NOT FIT TO BE HUMAN!!!!!!
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