The voters’ list for the upcoming by-election in St James North will not be posted online, says chairman of the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC), Senior Counsel Ramon Alleyne.
In 2021 and 2022, there was public uproar when the voters’ list, which included information such as national identification numbers, dates of birth, residential statuses, home addresses and more, was published on both the Barbados Government Information Service and EBC websites.
The argument was that the more than 5 000-page list being online exposed people to scammers and identity theft, though then EBC chairman Leslie Haynes (now Chief Justice), said it was not the first time the document was published online and maintained they were dutybound to publish the list electronically according to the laws of Barbados.
Yesterday, Alleyne assured this would not be the case for the May 21 by-election.
“The list has been published and is available for review at the EBC headquarters (in Warrens, St Michael), at the library (in Bridgetown) and the revising centre, which is Gordon Greenidge Primary School (in Rock Dundo, St James), so persons can check it. It will not be put out there online, so persons need not worry about that issue that might have arisen previously,” he said.
Alleyne said he just returned from Trinidad and Tobago’s general election as a member of the CARICOM observer team.
“My expectation at the end of the day is to have a wellrun, well-executed election, free and fair. Certainly, the practice and the history of Barbados are very strong and clear on that issue, and I have no different expectation for this election. The Commission is always looking to see how we can improve our process. If there’s anything new we can implement, we will.”
The chairman said the EBC was on track as the officer-in-charge and senior officers had been chosen and they would be revealed “in the normal course”. He also outlined his expectations of the political parties involved.
“The rules and regulations are relatively clear. There should be no posters or billboards until Nomination Day has passed. But I believe all the political parties in Barbados are mature enough and seasoned in practice that there should not be any concerns,” he said, though adding that publishing reminders might be prudent. (CA)
