General Secretary of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB) Dennis de Peiza has raised serious concerns about low voter turnout and what he described as major irregularities with the voters’ list, warning that the issues threaten public confidence in the democratic system.
Speaking during a news conference yesterday at CTUSAB headquarters at Letting No. 4, the Garrison, St Michael, de Peiza said the labour movement was deeply troubled by reports suggesting voter turnout ranged between 38 and 40 per cent, which he described as a worrying sign for participatory democracy.
“We all know that we have heard and [it’s] yet to be confirmed, about the level of voter turnout, but from what has been said, it would seem that there has been a low turnout, averaging between 38 to 40 per cent of our population,” he said.
“It is really, really concerning to us when we are speaking about a democracy where the populace is not exercising its right to vote. CTUSAB is of the very strong view that the exercising of the right to vote is a critical aspect of participatory democracy and it is important now that a conscientious, serious effort is made to educate our people about that right.”
He stressed that restoring public trust in the political system must be treated as a national priority.
Strongest criticism
However, de Peiza reserved his strongest criticism for what he described as serious and unacceptable flaws in the voters’ list, which he labelled “nothing short of a national disgrace”.
“We believe that wherever the errors are, however they were committed, it is not too late to correct them now, because this should never happen again.
“There should be a national population census commissioned immediately to make sure we clean up this voters’ list and get it right.”
He pointed to personal experience as evidence that the system needs urgent review.
“I am one of those persons who can attest that something was wrong. Even in my own home, my son, who is deceased, we received correspondence for him to go and vote at a polling station. A dead man cannot vote. That alone shows that something is wrong if we cannot even account for those who are no longer with us.”
‘Something is wrong’
He added that similar concerns were raised by others, including citizens who were unable to vote despite being properly registered and possessing identification.
“We have heard too much of persons saying they were overseas or that they had all their documents and still could not vote,” he said.
“Something is wrong and we need to address it. If something like this had occurred, responsible leadership should have said, ‘Let us put a hold on this, clean up the system and then proceed.’ We cannot send signals to the world that we are practising fairness when there are blatant irregularities and we proceed as though nothing happened.”
De Peiza said the country must take what he described as the “moral high road” in safeguarding the electoral process and ensuring that democracy reflects genuine national choice.
“We have to dismiss this notion about voting simply for an opposition,” he said. “A country needs to vote, elect and choose a government. We cannot start implanting in the minds of citizens that they are going to vote for an opposition. The integrity of our people, our leaders and our institutions must never be brought into disrepute.”
He stressed that decisive action is now needed to restore confidence in the electoral system and protect the democratic reputation of Barbados. (TRY)
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