So since the Chief Elections Officer was put on blast in the Senate today, she agreed to grant us an interview to refute all allegations. Additionally, she told us that she has evidence which indicates that Jerrylyn Bruce may have been negligent on the job, which could have disenfranchised Trevor Bradley, had she not stepped in.
She told us that she could not get into any details of the case because the matter will end up before the Public Service Commission, which will require Bruce to make a formal defence. She did add, however, that she did not do anything to bring her office into disrepute, and that she was simply ensuring that a born Belizean, who is qualified to be re-registered, wasn't excluded from the referendum vote. Here are her comments:
Josephine Tamai- Chief Elections Officer
"It is unfortunate that I have to be in this situation at this point in time especially when it comes to dealing with staff. We all know that from time to time we do have more persons that are more challenging when you are dealing with persons but, firstly I want to state that the accusations made by Ms. Bruce and for her saying that I am asking her to do things that are against regulations, I want to refute all those matters. At this point it's not that I am able to say much, it is a matter that is going before the public services commission and I need to ensure that due process is done. It is unfortunate that this officer chose to have gone to a lawyer to unions to whoever before the entire details of the case has been placed before her. But I will say that as the Chief Elections Officer, it is always my responsibility and I will continue to ensure that all those persons who are qualified get on the register. Yes, I heard the accusations being made saying that the person actually came in with a social security card. Again, I will tell you, that person applied for registration from the 26th of July 2018. That person and any other person who came in without documentation only with a social security card, those information are being sent to us to verify. And I will tell you, despite the fact that the officer is saying that that verification was done all the way up in March, I have the proof otherwise. And, like I said, I want to basically leave it at that point because it is a case that is going before the commission. This is not the first time that this officer is being brought before the commission. It is my responsibility to ensure that persons are not disenfranchised. I don't care what party the persons are. To be honest with you, I don't even know if the person has any political affiliation. That is none of my business when it comes to that. Each and every single eligible voter, or each person who is eligible to get registered, it is my duty to ensure that that happens."
Daniel Ortiz- Reporter
"Do you feel justified in pressing for sanctions to be taken against this particular officer?"
Josephine Tamai
"Well, based on the evidence that I have, I will tell you that yes it is a matter that I can't just sit back and allow these things to happen. Because persons must be allowed to get on that register if they are duly qualified."
Notably - and incredibly - Trevor Bradley works for Darrell Bradley as a campaigner.
There are 2 other voters from the Caribbean Shores Constituency who would not have made it on the list, due to a separate and unrelated reason. In those cases, the assertion is that it is a glitch in the electronic registering system which the Elections and Boundaries Department utilizes.
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