BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - THE United National Empowerment Party has officially declared its boycotting of the January 25 General Elections and has outlined the “fundamental concerns to the country” which influenced this decision.
Signed by the party’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Walford Arthurton, the UNEP issued a press release dated January 15, 2010 spelling out eight of its concerns, chief of which is what it opines is the illegal removal of names from the voters’ list.
“You will recall that the SR&O Statutory Rules and Order number 18 of 2006 which brought about the Electoral Reform etc., namely Re-confirmation of voters, the introduction of voters ID etc., was ruled by His Lordship Justice Errol Thomas as unconstitutional, null and void as there was no Principal Legislation to back such Regulations, therefore it was illegal.
“…voters who did not re-confirm, their names were taken off the voters’ lists. It was imperative that after the ruling, providing that there was no appeal on the matter, the Honourable and learned Attorney General, as Principal Legal Advisor to the government, should have instructed the Supervisor of Elections to put back those persons’ names on the voters’ lists.
The UNEP contends that, to date, the removed names have not been replaced on the list which, in effect, disfranchised “quite a number of people…many of whom are our party supporters”.
The communiqué spells out a number of other concerns ranging from an uneven political playing field manifested through the unavailability of the State-owned television and radio stations to all political parties, to the UNEP’s lack of confidence in the Supervisor of Elections, Leroy Benjamin Sr.
(a) The lack of a level (playing field) in the amount of monies which parties use for spending in election campaigning, although this was one of the recommendations (of) the Commonwealth Commission Report;
(b) The party is of the view that the ballots cast at each polling station should be counted there before they are taken at a central station where the final count will be given, so that…there will be no doubt or concerns about the true winner of the seat;
(c) There should be consultation by the Supervisor of Elections with all political parties in the selection of Poll Clerks and Presiding Officers;
(d) In addition (to) the overseas observers, the local NGOs like the Christian Council, Evangelical Association (and the) Chamber of (Industry) and Commerce should be allowed to monitor the operations on Election Day;
(e) The voting system in the Federation, from its inception, was always (first past the post) with the tie on constituency, this is the present law until repeal. However, what we are seeking is that a piece of first past the post and the (Proportional Representation), which is voting at large and still trying to hold on to the Constituency System. This is completely wrong it must be one of the other.
(f) The lack of confidence in the present Supervisor of Elections, bearing in mind his conduct during the 2004 General Elections and, more importantly, the ruling of His Lordship Justice Francis Belle in the case Hon. Rupert Herbert vs. Lindsay F. Grant.
SKNVibes made a number of attempts to contact the UNEP’s leader, Dr. Henry Browne, for further explanation of these points but the efforts were unsuccessful.
With UNEP out of the race, the eight available seats on St. Kitts are being contested by the incumbent St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party and the main opposition party, the People’s Action Movement (PAM). Two independent candidates have also thrown their hats in the ring. Reginald C. H. Thomas, alias ‘Calypso Reggie’, will be contesting the Constituency Number Seven seat while Elsroy ‘Toonai’ Dorset will be contesting the Constituency Number Two seat.
