Missing names on Grenada voters list concern two main political parties

The Parliamentary Election Office is yet to issue a statement on the issue, but the NNP said it was urging the Supervisor of Elections to immediately correct the inaccuracies.

ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Friday January 11, 2013 – Grenada’s two main political parties Friday said they were concerned over a number of names missing from the voters list as the island prepares for a general expected within 90 days.

The ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) said however it is “confident that the discrepancies which have been identified in the 2012 Consolidated Voters’ List will be resolved shortly”.

The party said that a review of the list “indicated the omission of the names of some previously registered voters. 

“In the interest of democracy, the NDC made immediate contact with the Electoral Office to register our concerns regarding the accuracy of the list and emphasized the need for the appropriate steps to be taken to ensure that the final list includes all enumerated citizens.

“The NDC supports a fair electoral process, which honours the wishes of the people through their vote.  We believe that every citizen of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique has the right to cast his/her vote. “

When he announced that he had requested Governor General Sir Carlyle Glean to dissolve the Parliament paving the way for the general election, Prime Minister Tillman Thomas said the election date would be known “shortly” as he wanted to give all nationals who are eligible to vote an opportunity to be registered.

“All such persons who are yet to register are urged to do so now,” he said.

The main opposition New National Party (NNP), seeking to regain power following its defeat by the NDC in 2008, said it too had identified thousands of names missing from the list released last month.

It said “the most pronounced infraction is in the St. George South East constituency” where in the month of September there were 3438 registered voters out of a total 54, 234.

But the party said when the list was released at the end of December last year “this number shrank to 2227, over 1200 names being removed”.

The Parliamentary Election Office is yet to issue a statement on the issue, but the NNP said it was urging the Supervisor of Elections to immediately correct the inaccuracies.

“With the massive expenditure on new technology, this blunder, if indeed it is a blunder, is inexcusable and points to the serious problem that could be encountered in the upcoming general elections,” the opposition party said.

The NDC however said it recognises that with a new electoral system “the discrepancies may well be the result of technical errors.  

“We are therefore appealing to all registered voters to contact their constituency office or registration officer immediately to ensure that their names are on the voters' list,” the party added.

In the 2008 general election, the NDC won 11 of the 15 seats in the Parliament. (CMC) Click here to receive free news bulletins via email from Caribbean360. (View sample)