PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC—The leader of the main opposition United National Congress (UNC), Kamla Persad Bissessar, said Monday that while she had been able to cast her ballot without any hindrance, she has had reports of lengthy periods for voters at other polling stations as Trinidad and Tobago elects a new government.
“I don’t know if it was a deliberate strategy to frustrate people or just incompetence on the part of some. It is something we are getting reports,” she told reporters after casting her ballot at the Hermitage Presbyterian School.
She said that the reporters were covering the slow voting process “at several constituencies where it matters most, I would say.”
Persad Bissessar has issued a stern warning that anyone caught bribing voters will face the full extent of the law. She said reports of voter bribery have already surfaced in the marginal Moruga/Tableland constituency.
The UNC has dispatched several letters to the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) complaining about the delays, mentioning “the non-availability of writing material, in particular to an elderly voter, as well as issues in administering/affixing the stamp on her ballot.”
In a statement posted on its Facebook page, the UNC urged voters to go out and vote, saying, “We are facing several issues with the EBC.
“Many EBC officials are either untrained or deliberately frustrate our voters. Do not get frustrated. Stay in line, and make sure your ballot is stamped, signed, folded, and dropped off! We are almost there,” it said.
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