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| Friday, May 12, 2006 |
Region 10 needs more centres
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AS THE Peoples National Congress Reform Deputy Chief Scrutineer for Region 10, I think its important that I write to inform the public about my concern at GECOMs activities in the conduct of the Claims and Objections period in Region 10.
We have been informed by GECOM that the Claims and Objections periods run concurrently from May 2nd and close on May 22nd and May 29th, 2006, respectively. We have also been informed by GECOM that a total of seven sub-offices were to be set up in Region 10 to facilitate the conduct of this Claims and Objections exercise.
This number of offices is wholly inadequate to deal with a region the size of ours, with seven facilities expected to cover the entire region.
However, at the time of writing this letter on Wednesday, May 10, 2006, only four of the seven offices that are supposed to be set up at Region 10 are operational.
Of these four, only three were available to the public at Mackenzie and Wismar at the start of this exercise, while another became operational a week after the start of the exercise, on Monday, May 8.
None of the offices in the outlying areas of Region 10 are operational at the time of writing this letter.
Additionally, the location identified for the Berbice River sub-office at Kimbia is totally inconvenient and out of sync with the people of those communities.
The Berbice River communities encompass a 100-mile swathe of terrain accessible almost exclusively by river, and without the means of communication that less remote areas are accustomed to.
Kimbia, the location chosen for this sub-office in the Berbice River, sits more than 30 miles away from the more densely populated communities along the Berbice River in either direction away from its location.
Residents of communities such as Hururu, Wikki Calcuni, Coomacka, Weruni, Gaetroy, Ebini and De Velde, just to name a few, would find it extremely difficult to paddle the 30 odd miles to get to this centre, and for those fortunate to have boats with engines, gasoline sells in those communities for approximately $1,500 per gallon.
I wish to point out that during the registration campaign, mobile registration teams visited the Berbice River twice, but went to different areas in the Berbice River on these two occasions.
This had the net effect of denying residents who were not present on the occasion that the mobile team visited the opportunity to register. The further inconvenience of the location of this lone fixed centre at Kimbia, further ensures that a significant number of persons eligible to vote at the upcoming elections will be disenfranchised.
I therefore call on GECOM to revise the number and location of the centres allocated to Region 10, and especially in the Berbice River, to ensure that this almost certain disenfranchisement does not occur.
Additionally, no television advertisements have been placed to advise and encourage persons of how to take advantage of this period, especially those persons who would be registering for the first time.
Again, given the terrain of the outlying areas and their lack of mass communication facilities, mobile teams to communicate GECOMs intentions, as well as mobile services are a necessity for these residents.
Our research has indicated that persons in these areas are not even aware that there is an intention to set up a Claims and Objections sub-office at Kimbia.
Many people are therefore placed at the disadvantage of not knowing where these services will be offered or where lists are posted, through the lack of information being provided by GECOM.
As Deputy Chief Scrutineer for Region 10, I am of the firm view, and wish to recommend that GECOM reviews its position on the allocation of time for the Claims and Objections period in Region 10, especially concerning the Mackenzie and outlying sub-offices at Ituni, Kwakwani and Kimbia, and extend this period to ensure that the residents of Region 10 are not disenfranchised, especially since as mentioned before, the offices in these areas were not operational on the date specified by GECOM when persons should have been able to visit these offices to make their claims or objections.
I also wish to recommend that GECOM increase the number of offices to be set up for this purpose in Region 10 from the paltry figure of seven and the mobile Claims and Objections Units be set up to service our outlying communities.
Adequate time and facilities must be given to residents of Region 10 for the completion of this exercise, and special arrangements will have to be made to recoup the time lost by this entire sub-district, by virtue of GECOM not setting up its apparatus to address the execution of this exercise in a timely and effective manner.
SANDRA ADAMS
DEPUTY CHIEF SCRUTINEER REGION 10
PNCR
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