Liberty and Justice Party (LJP) leader and presidential candidate for the 2020 General and Regional Elections, Lenox Shuman, told the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Monday that he lacked constitutional or statutory authority to intervene during Region Four’s disputed vote tabulation and verification.
He said, however, that he acted out of civic duty to “safeguard the electorate’s franchise” in the face of what he described as attempted fraud.
Pressed under cross-examination by defence attorney Nigel Hughes, Shuman admitted his actions at the Ashmin’s Building during the March 2020 elections were not legally grounded.
Asked if his authority came from the Constitution of Guyana or the Representation of the People Act, Shuman conceded, “Nowhere that I can read,” but insisted, “It is what any civic-minded person would do. Any civic-minded person would intervene when they see something is going wrong.”
At the centre of the exchange was Shuman’s claim that GECOM’s then IT officer Enrique Livan—one of nine defendants now facing electoral fraud charges—was engaged in “suspicious activity” during the tabulation.
Shuman testified that he reported his concerns to then Division Four ‘A’ Police Commander Edgar Thomas, though he admitted he could not recall his exact words after five years.
“The complaint was that Mr. Livan was engaged in an activity outside of the tabulation room that was not in line with the instructions left by the then Chief Elections Officer, [Keith Lowenfield],” Shuman said.
When Hughes asked if this amounted to a criminal complaint, Shuman replied: “It was not a criminal complaint. It was a complaint.”
Hughes pressed further: “So, you made a complaint to the police but it was not a criminal complaint?” Shuman confirmed, “Correct.”
The defence also questioned Shuman about entering a GECOM-controlled room and handling a pile of documents.
Shuman denied interfering with Statements of Poll (SoPs), clarifying, “I said a pile of documents, not SoPs,” and admitted he could not confirm whether the papers belonged to GECOM.
He conceded he “did not have the authority” but rejected suggestions that he acted out of entitlement as a presidential candidate.
When Hughes remarked, “You used to call them nosey parker in the olden days,” Shuman retorted, “I wouldn’t know that.”
Earlier in his testimony, Shuman said he witnessed discrepancies when Livan projected Region Four results that did not match the SoPs held by political parties.
After objections were raised, he said Livan paused the process, citing fatigue.
According to the witness, Livan was later found in another area with his laptop connected to a flash drive and printer.
Shuman claimed he saw a “pre-populated” spreadsheet on the screen before Livan quickly closed it.
The ongoing trial centres on allegations that officials and political operatives conspired to manipulate Region Four’s results, inflating votes for APNU+AFC while reducing votes for the PPP/C.
The accused include former Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield, former Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers, and former Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo.
Also charged are former Health Minister under the APNU+AFC government Volda Lawrence and PNCR member Carol Smith-Joseph.
The remaining defendants are former GECOM staffers: Enrique Livan, Sheffern February, Denise Babb-Cummings, and Michelle Miller. Collectively, these nine individuals are central to the trial, which examines the conduct of both political and administrative actors during one of Guyana’s most contentious elections.
The disputed March 2020 elections triggered months of litigation before a national recount, overseen by GECOM and CARICOM, confirmed the PPP/C’s victory with 233,336 votes against APNU+AFC’s 217,920.
Dr. Irfaan Ali was sworn in as president on August 2, 2020, after five months of political deadlock.
The trial continues today before Acting Chief Magistrate Faith Mc Gusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
