And the politics just doesn't stop - our next story is about a controversy that the PUP is stirring in the Elections and Boundaries Department. The opposition is accusing the Chairman of the UDP, Alberto August of perpetrating mass fraud with proxy votes - and further alleging that the Chief Elections Officer is complicit in it.
The manager for the PUP Cayo Central campaign, Horace Grant wrote to the Chief elections officer yesterday alleging that August went to the Cayo Central elections and Boundaries office on Tuesday and demanded that the registrar sign quote, "hundred's of blank proxy forms." End quote. Grant alleges that the registrar refused and that's when August called the Chief Elections officer, and put her on speakerphone where she instructed the registrar to go ahead and sign the forms.
Now, this would be very irregular, and both August and Tamai have flatly denied that version of events. We spoke to August today and he told us it's a silly story for the silly season:...
Alberto August, UDP Party Chairman
"Well Courtney, the leader of our party the prime minister of this country said it right; this is silly season and I could never have seen a sillier thing than that. Let me explained to you what happened on Tuesday of this week which was the day before yesterday. I had one proxy form for a police man who is working official police duties on Election Day. The form was duly signed by the commissioner of police. Signed and stamped by the commissioner of police. I took in one proxy form for this police man who is on working on duty, along with the person who the police appointed to vote proxy for him. I approached the Elections and Boundaries office, Cayo Central on the Western Highway in Santa Elena. I got in there and I presented the signed proxy form to the registering officer inside of the office. She reviewed it and after a while she said that this form doesn't have any date. Apparently the commissioner signed it and forgot to put the date that he sign it. She can't accept. I said miss, it's the same date that the person signed the form. The commissioner forgot to sign. She say that she will not accept that. I say miss, come let me put in the date. It's duly signed by the commissioner or police and stamped. The commissioner forgot to put in the date. At that time the commissioner was out of the country. She said that I needed to go back and do it over - the whole form. I said miss, hold on. I got in contact with the chief elections officer and explained the situation to the chief elections officer and she said no man, the lady just needs to accept that - just sign it."
"I went inside of the registering officer again and explained to the lady what I was told by chief elections officer. She told me blankly that she is not going to accept this. Can't you hear? I said miss, I just spoke to your boss outside. So I got on the phone and I call the chief elections officer, put the chief elections officer on speaker, so that she could hear and the chief elections officer issued the instructions to her to sign the thing."
Courtney Weatherburne
"By you just calling the chief elections officer, that in itself may be presented some level of intimidation? She might feel compelled to let the register signed it. Could you see how you respond to those criticism that just by a call from you....?"
Alberto August, UDP Party Chairman
"That is my role of the chairman of this party to ensure that every single voter who wants to vote for us vote. I was not asking for anything, and I will never ask for anything illegal to be done."
"Well probably I might have come across as forceful. But then when you are acting in that irregular and irresponsible manner man... all the commissioner of police forgot to do was put a date on the form. That's all."
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