Elections Fraud Trial: Local Observer details uproar over false Region Four declaration

Days after the resumption of the 2020 General and Regional Elections fraud trial, local observer Rosalinda Rasul detailed the efforts made by the Returning Officer for Region Four, Clairmont Mingo, to falsely declare the results, despite some 500 Statements of Poll (SOPs) remaining unverified.

Rasul, who is the Head of the Diaspora Unit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, is the first witness to give evidence in the trial following its restart.

Nine individuals are before the court in relation to electoral fraud. They are: former APNU+AFC government minister Volda Lawrence; former GECOM Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield; former GECOM Returning Officer for District Four Clairmont Mingo; former GECOM Deputy Chief Election Officer Roxanne Myers; APNU+AFC’s Chief Scrutineer Carol Smith Joseph; and former GECOM employees Sheffern February, Enrique Livan, Michelle Miller, and Denise Babb-Cummings.

They face nine conspiracy charges allegedly committed between Election Day (2 March 2020) and 2 August 2020.

It is alleged that the defendants conspired during the 2020 General and Regional Elections to defraud the electors of Guyana by declaring a false account of votes cast.

On Monday, they pleaded not guilty when they appeared before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court. Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty is presiding over the trial. The case finally commenced in July 2024 after years of delays. However, further setbacks occurred when presiding magistrate Leron Daly reported sick and extended his leave, necessitating the reassignment of the case.

Observer Details Chaos During Vote Tabulation

During Tuesday’s proceedings, Rasul, who served as an observer with the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham), testified about the chaos that unfolded at the GECOM Command Centre, which was housed at Ashmin’s Building.

She recounted that on 4 March 2020, during the tabulation of votes cast in the region, a commotion erupted outside the room, and emergency medical technicians arrived to attend to Mingo, who had reportedly fallen ill.

“I saw Mr Mingo. He was strapped into a chair and had a respirator on his nose,” Rasul told the court.

The process eventually resumed, but an announcement was made that the focus would shift to tabulating results for the East Bank district. This led to an uproar, as the tabulation for Georgetown had not yet been completed. Despite objections from observers and party representatives, Rasul said no action was taken by GECOM officials.

Further, she testified about efforts to use a spreadsheet made from a bedsheet to verify votes and the intervention of Myers, who assigned Miller and another woman to oversee the tabulation process. Both appointments were met with objections from election officials and party representatives.

“I don’t know the source of the spreadsheet, but it was the same document Miller was reading from. These women had called 21 boxes, out of which 17 contained inaccuracies,” Rasul recounted.

At this point, Lowenfield was called in upon request, but discrepancies persisted.

“Miller proceeded to call numbers from the SOPs again, and this continued until about 9:00 p.m., when she suddenly halted the process, citing fatigue. This led to a loud outcry from party agents, who argued that they had just returned from a break and should not need another one,” Rasul said.

Despite the objections, the process was halted. The following day, 5 March 2020, the tabulation resumed, but the inaccuracies continued—this time made by Livan, who reportedly stated that he was “not cut out for this” and was exhausted.

Rasul testified that Livan left the room before returning to collect a laptop and a flash drive—the same laptop used to enter the data. This action also caused an uproar.

Bomb Threat and Alleged False Declaration

According to Rasul, there was then an alleged bomb threat, seemingly an attempt to remove party agents from the building. However, she said she was among those who remained.

“I didn’t believe that it was a genuine bomb threat,” Rasul said.

The day continued with the appearances of Lawrence and Mingo, the latter holding a piece of paper. It was then that Mingo attempted to make a false declaration of the results, triggering chaos.

Rasul further testified that Myers instructed those present to leave the building, despite the tabulation being incomplete and over 500 SOPs remaining unverified.

The trial continues on Wednesday, when Rasul is expected to complete her testimony.