The CARICOM officials identified to participate in the recount of ballots will be permitted to undergo WHO approved reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests for COVID-19 in their respective home countries prior to arrival in Guyana, and they will be permitted entry on the basis that such test results are negative;

If any official is unable to have such medical test conducted prior to arrival in Guyana, the Ministry of Public Health will have such test done upon arrival in Guyana on the condition that the official self-quarantines for a maximum of 48 hours while the test results are being ascertained;

Therefore, quarantining of the incoming officials for the mandatory period of 14 days will not be applicable upon compliance with either of the aforesaid requirements.

Election Commissioner, Vincent Alexander told reporters that “the starting time would be adjusted with when they are able to arrive.  so when they indicate to us when they will be available to arrive , that will influence the start time.”

He also told reporters that the recount was likely to last 10 hours each day from 8 AM to 6 PM, now that the curfew hours have been relaxed for workers involved in the process. 

He said the National COVID-19 Task Force has advised that each room should not have more than 14 people at any time, sanitising measures, and provisions must be made for proper access to specially designated washrooms for different areas of the building.

In the meantime, Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Claudette Singh says she has reported to police and cybercrime investigators about a threat on her life but she says she is not afraid of death and she vowed to get the national vote recount off the ground.

“I reported it to police but also cybercrime.  They have a bounty on my head from Friday night,” Singh told reporters shortly after she, other commissioners and members of the National COVID-19 Task Force toured the Arthur Chung Conference Centre where the recount of votes cast in the March 2, 2020 general elections would be conducted.

Singh says she was committed to ensuring the more than 400,000 votes are recounted. “I am doing everything possible. I am the person who spoke about the recount. I am the person who made that commitment and I am going to see it through. I, like them, want to see it over,” she said.