The People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) is calling on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to solicit proposals from experts on the use of biometrics at polling places. It wants this to be done ahead of the 2025 General and Regional Elections.
“We hereby call on GECOM to seek proposals from expert firms on using fingerprint biometrics in Guyana for registration and voting. Advertising in the local and international media, submission of proposals, and evaluation should take no more than 4 to 5 weeks.
“This is the only acceptable basis that GECOM and stakeholders can have a shared understanding of the timeframe and other issues involved and to make knowledgeable decisions,” the PNCR said in a statement on Friday.
The party has also come out firing at the GECOM Chairperson, Justice (retired) Claudette Singh for her “alliance and dalliance” with the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C). They accused her of siding with the party on the matter of biometrics use. According to the PNCR, Singh said that implementing such a project now would not be feasible within the time presently available.
“The PNCR rejects her decision as uninformed, irresponsible, devious, and conniving. First, it is an act of deviousness for the Justice Singh to now use lack of time as an excuse when the demand for a clean voters list and fingerprint biometrics was tabled on GECOM’s agenda soon after the 2020 general and regional elections – some four years ago,” the party said.
The PNCR added that since then, the GECOM head made no effort to facilitate a full discussion of the issue in accordance with the constitutional mandate of the commission and the expectation of Guyanese for accurate and credible elections.
“She, in fact, delayed and hindered the process in lockstep with the PPP’s own agenda. Justice Claudette Singh as GECOM chair has shown neither leadership, vision, nor courage. Instead, she has chosen the path of least resistance by voting with the PPP commissioners on all major issues.”
The PNCR is calling on Guyanese to protest her Singh’s dismissal of biometrics, asking what data or information she used to arrive at her conclusion.
“Did she benefit from any project schedule or Gantt Chart prepared by experts in such operations? If so, we call on Justice Singh to release to all stakeholders, including the public, the evidence she used to inform her decision. She must name the specialists she consulted if she did. Failure to do so would reflect badly on her already questionable competence and integrity.”
