Imbert: UNC is frustrating recount deliberately

PNM chairman Colm Imbert accused the UNC of trying to frustrate the recount of ballots in five marginal constituencies from Monday’s general election.

He also told a briefing at Balisier House, Port of Spain on Thursday the UNC was allegedly harassing returning officers and portraying the election as rigged.

Imbert said earlier at the St Joseph recount, the UNC queried every ballot as a delaying tactic, such that not a single ballot box has been completed. At this rate, the recount will take two months, he said.

He called on the Election and Boundaries Commission (EBC) under rule 101 of the Representation of the People Act to work in a way that was fair, careful, efficient and also expeditious. Saying he has run in nine elections but never seen anything like what he was now seeing in the recounts, he urged protection for the returning officers and the electoral process. Imbert said losing UNC candidates have made many wild allegations to try to disrupt the recounts in “every possible way.”

“We never had anything like this in TT before where a man is saying, ‘I don’t know whose signature this is’, ‘I don’t like how that X is looking.’

Imbert said the UNC agent in Sangre Grande was ridiculous.

“The person said the X must be dead centre between the two. This is nothing to laugh for. It’s thing to cry: ‘The X must be dead centre between the top line and bottom line.’

“All the law requires is the mark must be between the top line and bottom line.”

Imbert said the UNC complained of not seeing all four legs of the X.

“That is not the law either. The law says the mark must be made so that the intention of the voter is clear.

“So if you stamp it and three of the parts of the X come out good and the fourth part is not so good, once it is between the lines and to the right of the symbol, it is obvious who the person is voting for, so you can determine the intention of the voter.

“But every ballot initially whoever they (UNC) sent to Grande was questioning where the X was. ‘It’s not in the middle’ and ‘I don’t like how that X is looking.’ As a result, in six hours in Grande, they counted one box on the first day.” He said whenever the PNM loses they simply put their tail between their legs, crawl off and come to fight another day.

“What is wrong with these people? They are trying to give TT a bad name. They know all this foolishness they are talking about, ‘Somebody thief ballot boxes’ and the signature of the presiding officer is wrong, this will be published internationally.”

He said contrary to UNC claims, the Prime Minister had invited foreign observers but covid19 stopped them coming.

Imbert claimed the UNC had alleged police officers from Tunapuna and St Joseph had stolen two ballot boxes and hid them in Tunapuna police station.

He said he asked Commissioner of Police (CoP) Gary Griffith to probe the allegations after which a full search of the station was done under Supt Montrichard.

“No ballot boxes were found hidden or secured on the station compound.”

Imbert said Griffith had contacted the police at the St Joseph recount who said the returning officer said all ballot boxes were on site and accounted for.

“This is the level of foolishness we have to put up with,” Imbert scoffed.

UNC candidate for St Joseph Ahloy Hunt in a statement on his Facebook page, later said he had never lodged a complaint of missing ballot boxes nor accused anyone of stealing any ballot boxes.