Georgetown: At the end of the second week of the national recount of votes cast in the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) reported the completion of 789 ballot boxes between Regions One to Seven.
On Wednesday saw the completion of an additional 71 boxes including 18 from Region Three, 14 from Region Four, 13 from Region Five, 20 from Region Six and six from Region Seven.
The tabulation saw 732 Statements of Recount (SOR) for the General Elections and 756 for the Regional completed.
The new tally now sets the remaining boxes at 1,550.
Public Relations Officer of GECOM Yolanda Ward said the commission will be seeking further approval from the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF) for the setting up of two more workstations to speed up the recount process.
“Being cognisant that it is of national importance that this recount exercise concludes as quickly as possible, it is the intention if the Chairperson to write to the National Task Force again to seek their reconsideration for an additional two workstations,” Ward stated.
Only recently, following an assessment of the centre the task force granted permission for two more stations to be added bringing the total to 12. However, with the current pace of the recount, GECOM will be seeking guidance to have two more stations added to meet its 25-day timeline.
The PRO noted that while the Commission operates autonomously in light of the current threat of the virus it cannot work in isolation.
“We have to aware that we are dealing with a health situation and need to be sure that we do not put people’s lives at risk. While we will have to make decisions, in this particular area we must seek guidance.”
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