ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada– The central National Democratic Congress (NDC) says it has found “countless inaccuracies” in the recently published voters list for Thursday’s general election “despite numerous legitimate objections raised by the party.
In a statement, the NDC said it has since strengthened its legal enforcement team securing the services of “legal experts from the region” amidst “significant ongoing inaccuracies on the final electoral list.”
A spokesman for the Parliamentary Elections Office (PEO) said a statement would be issued later on Wednesday dealing with the concerns raised by the NDC, which is one of five political parties contesting the election that Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell called ahead of the constitutional deadline of March 2023.
Earlier this week, the PEO announced that 87 506 people had been registered to vote on Thursday. Voting will take place from 6.00 am to 5.00 pm (local time) at the 285 polling stations. Police officers voted on Monday.
In its statement, the NDC said it was forced to strengthen its legal team “following numerous inaccuracies spotted on the recently published final electoral list.
“Despite numerous legitimate objections raised by the NDC during the time prescribed by the constitution, the final list remains bloated and significantly suspect,” the party said, adding that it raised “several factual and legitimate objections and requested the removal of ineligible names from the electoral list.”
The NDC said these include the “names of Grenadians who have passed away over four years ago; people who are unknown in the villages, where it is verified that no such person lives; males who are registered as females; and many other valid objections.
“Moreover, hundreds of voters have not yet been issued their voter registration cards,” the party said, with the general election taking place on Thursday “these legitimate objections accepted by the Parliamentary Elections Office (PEO) have not been corrected in the final list.
“Additionally, the NDC Election Campaign has received first-hand reports of ongoing efforts to disenfranchise citizens of their right to vote through voter intimidation, suppression, and other unsavory tactics,” the party said, adding that the matter had been drawn to the attention of the election observer teams as well as the United Nations, the Carter Foundation.
“The NDC continues to be vigilant and proactive on behalf of all Grenadian patriots to ensure a free and fair general election. The NDC calls on all law-abiding citizens to be vigilant over the next few days and to help ensure that the general election is fair and free from fear, intimidation, and dishonesty on June 23, 2022.”
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