Nunez-Tesheira sends PNM election committee legal letter

CHAIRMAN of the People's National Movement (PNM) Election Supervisory Committee Anthony Roberts has responded to a pre-action protocol letter from a legal team representing Karen Nunez-Tesheira.

The letter, from attorney Egon N Embrak, expresses grave concern about the risk of ballot boxed being tampered with ballot-box tampering while they are being transported and stored and votes are counted and tabulated, in the course of the three-day elections exercise. It threatens legal action if these issues are not addressed before the internal elections .

PNM members are expected to vote for 35 of the 39 challenged candidates over three days: November 26 and 27 and December 4.

In the past, PNM internal elections were a one-day exercise when ballots were cast and counted on the same day.

Nunez-Tesheira is one of three candidates challenging Dr Keith Rowley for the post of political leader. The others are Junior Barrack and Ronald Boynes.

She noted that while the party’s constitution is silent on completing the election process in one day, it has been the staple practice and time-honoured custom and convention that votes are counted and tabulated in the presence of appointed representatives in one day.

This exercise, she submitted, was even more critical, considering the increased risk of tampering with the ballot boxes when the elections are spread over multiple days and constituencies, requiring the back-and-forth transportation and handling of the ballot boxes during that time.

She said the PNM internal elections should represent something of a microcosm of general elections, which are conducted and completed in one day.

Roberts told Newsday on Thursday, he has acknowledged receipt of Embrak’s letter and has asked for time, until next Tuesday, to respond, as the matter has been referred to the committee’s legal team.

In the October 14 pre-action protocol letter, Embrak gave Roberts until October 19 to respond.

Roberts said he responded personally to Embrak, but the matter has been referred to the committee’s legal team.

In a previous letter to Roberts, which was shared with the media on October 7, Nunez-Tesheira first broached the issue of transparency and fairness in the unprecedented nine-day period for the elections and handling of the ballot boxes during that protracted time.

She is questioning what will happen with the ballot boxes at the end of each day’s voting, whether they will be moved from one location to another for safekeeping, and if so, by whom.

Embrak has threatened legal action if these specific concerns outlined are not addressed before the elections.

He is also seeking rectification of the lack of proper and timely communication of electoral requirements and the denial of Nunez-Tesheira's request for the preliminary list of registered voters.

He said his client is demanding transparency, integrity, accountability and objectivity in the electoral process, in a manner that can be deemed fair.

Nunez-Tesheira also told Newsday she was promised a copy of the registered voters list and her team was scheduled to collect it later on Thursday.

She said the intention was not to stall the elections, but to have the issues addressed, especially the storage of the boxes.

“In any event, it does not leave a good feeling.”