Kamla: EBC's boundary changes meant to benefit PNM

Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar has challenged the recommendations of the draft Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) Order, 2024. Speaking in Parliament on December 9, she asked the Prime Minister (PM) why the changes to the boundaries of 16 constituencies resulted in increased numbers in PNM areas.

“When you’re shifting the package of polling divisions (PDs) from one seat to the next, why is it always in a particular direction? You mentioned San Fernando East and San Fernando West. But right on the border of the east and west San Fernando is Oropouche East and Oropouche West.

"Why is it – and again, the EBC gives us no reasons – that we never take from Oropouche East or West to put in San Fernando West? We always take it from San Fernando East. Why?

"And we know why: because it’s a PNM waterbed. The package comes from a strong PNM seat into a marginal PNM seat.

“I’m not happy with the way the EBC shifts polling divisions. So if we want to modify (the report) that is something we will have to look at.
"And then the EBC gives you no reason as to why it happens in that manner.

"In a previous election period, they picked up (a polling division) from St Ann’s East and dropped it into St Joseph. You take from St Joseph and drop it in St Augustine.

"It is a clear PNM watershed where packages are moving from PNM into PNM in seats where the PNM wants to win. The EBC doesn’t tell us why.”

In his reply, Dr Rowley said the boundaries were determined geographically, beginning with Chacachacare in the north and proceeding southward.

Persad-Bissesssar said she had no intention of agreeing to changing the recommendations made by the EBC in its 2024 report. The report was laid in Parliament on April 11, after being submitted to the PM and the Speaker of the House on March 13.

She took issue with Rowley’s objection to the renaming of certain constituencies as proposed by the EBC, including Arouca/Maloney to Trincity/Maloney, D’Abadie/O’Meara to Malabar/Mausica, and Pointe-a-Pierre to Claxton Bay. She said she did not remember in her many years in Parliament that the government had ever modified an EBC report.

She said, according to the Constitution, the process was, as soon as the EBC submitted its report, the minister chosen by the PM should lay in the House of Representatives “for its approval the draft of an order by the President for giving effect, whether with or without modification, to the recommendations contained in the report, and that draft may make provision for any matters which appear to the minister to be incidental to or consequential upon the other provisions of the draft.

“Where any draft made under this section gives effect to any such recommendations with modifications, the minister shall lay the draft before the House of Representatives together with a statement of the reasons for the modifications.”

The Opposition Leader insisted that debate on any modifications proposed by the PM on the report could not take place “on the hoof” and she would not be doing so.

Persad-Bissessar said the EBC began a national field verification exercise in 2023, and the last exercise was in 2001.

“We are dealing with data to determine elections and democracy.
"There is no excuse for the EBC to have failed in its duties to conduct a national field-verification exercise for 22 years. It is unforgivable and inexcusable and emphasises the massive bias and dysfunction the UNC has continuously accused the EBC of.
"We are calling on the government to ascertain from the EBC what is the status of the national field-verification exercise which began last year?

“These electoral lists, pursuant to this EBC order and thereafter the writ of elections, are going to be based on 2020 data, so we are working on false lists.
"If, PM, you want to make modifications, that is something we need to work with. If this is not fixed, we cannot have a free and fair election.”

Rowley later said it would be legal to hold the election with the current list, although he shared the Opposition Leader’s concerns about the length of time between exercises.

Persad-Bissessar also asked about the status of the national census, which she said was tied to having proper electoral lists. She asked the Central Statistical Office (CSO) to provide the country with an urgent update on the census.

“That one began since 2022. We are now in 2024. What’s happening with that? This report informs and impacts directly or indirectly the outcome of elections in our country.
"The CSO’s website said the census is done every ten years and it is the most complex and costly exercise a statistical office can undertake. The census will inform and verify the data collected by the EBC.

“The Planning Ministry said the CSO is planning to complete the census by the fourth quarter of 2024, which is where we are now, and we have no update on this very important document.
"Does the government have the document? If the answer is yes, it should be shared with the population."

Rowley said the information collected by the EBC concerned the particular people who lived at specific locations, while the CSO data was concerned solely with numbers. He said the two reports could not be used to cross-check each other.