Training for national recount underway at ACCC
DPI, Guyana, Thursday, April 30, 2020
The Secretariat of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) this morning commenced the training of 80 officers, who will be participating in the national recount of the March 2, 2020 ballots, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC).
Public Relations Officer (PRO) Yolanda Ward said the training is based on the recount’s workplan and the order, which is yet to be gazetted.
The one-day training will acquaint staff members on the methodology for the recount as well as their respective responsibilities.
“The process this morning is basically to go through the methodology that has been developed for the recount, to apprise the staff of the procedures it entails and to give them a walkthrough of the respective stations that they will be at,” Ward told the media outside the ACCC this morning.
GECOM will be utilising ten workstations for the national recount, eight of which will have 14 persons and two, ten persons each. Each of those workstations will also have at least four staff members of the commission, including a supervisor.
Ward said the commission will be strictly observing the guidelines provided by the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF). Staff members have already been made aware of those recommendations
One such recommendation is for participants of the process to change their mask every 30 to 60 minutes. She said however that the NCTF did not specify the type of mask that should be used. According to the PRO, the commission will seek further guidance from the task force on this.
The secretariat has already commenced the establishment of the cameras that will be used to display the ballots on the screen. Other logistics will be completed soon.
Meanwhile, regarding the commencement date for the exercise, Ward said the commission has not yet received word from CARICOM about the name of the members of the team or their arrival date.
The commission is hoping that the communication from the Secretary-General Ambassador Irwin LaRocque will come very soon.
Tags: Ministry of Communities, Guyana Elections Commission, national recount, COVID-19, ACCC, training Yolanda Ward.