Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony has told the court that during the 2020 national recount, he was able to independently verify that figures being processed during tabulation were consistent with official Statements of Recount, based on his direct observations inside the tabulation room.
Appearing before Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Tuesday, Dr. Anthony outlined his involvement in the recount exercise, explaining that he served as both a PPP/C candidate and a recount agent.
This role, he said, placed him in a position to observe the handling and verification of votes as they moved from recount stations to the tabulation stage.He told the court that the recount began on May 7, 2020, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre and followed a structured system involving 10 workstations. He explained that ballot boxes from across the country were opened and recounted at these stations, after which Statements of Recount were prepared and sent to a central area for tabulation.
Dr. Anthony said that within the tabulation room, a range of stakeholders were present, including GECOM officials, political party agents, international observers and members of a Caribbean Community (CARICOM) team overseeing the process. According to his evidence, the tabulation process involved projecting each Statement of Recount onto a screen, making it visible to everyone present. He said he used copies in his possession to check that the information being displayed was accurate.
Once the figures were displayed, Minister Anthony said, GECOM officials would read out the numbers before entering them into a spreadsheet. This spreadsheet, he explained, was also projected, allowing observers to monitor the data entry process in real time.
“I was able to see how they were entering the information on the computer, and as they entered that information, it was being displayed on the screen,” he said. He indicated that he checked the figures at each stage—comparing what was read aloud, what appeared on the projected Statements of Recount, and what was entered into the spreadsheet—and found them to be consistent throughout the process.
The court heard that each statement remained on display for several minutes, giving those present an opportunity to review the figures before the process moved on.
Dr. Anthony also described the preparation of Certificates of Recount after tabulation for each district was completed. He said he examined the figures on these certificates before signing them on behalf of the PPP/C.“I then looked at the numbers, verified that those numbers were accurate… and then signed the certificate of recount,” he said.
He confirmed that he signed certificates covering all 10 electoral districts and that his signature appears on each document. Afterward, he collected copies of the certificates and related spreadsheets, which had been stamped and signed by GECOM officials, and handed them over to the party’s Chief Election Agent, Zulfikar Mustafa, in keeping with internal procedures.
Throughout his testimony, Dr. Anthony maintained that he had a clear view of the tabulation process, including both the projected documents and the individuals entering the data.
Following his testimony, the minister was cross-examined by defence attorneys Nigel Hughes and Eusi Anderson. His testimony forms part of the prosecution’s evidence in the ongoing elections fraud trial, which continues today before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
The defendants in the matter are former Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield, former Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers, former Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo, former Health Minister Volda Lawrence, and People’s National Congress Reform member Carol Smith-Joseph.
Also charged are former GECOM staff members Michelle Miller, Sheffern February, Enrique Livan, and Denise Babb-Cummings. The defendants face multiple charges, including conspiracy to defraud and misconduct in public office, in relation to the tabulation of votes from the March 2020 elections.
All defendants have entered not guilty pleas and were granted release on significant cash bail. At the heart of the case are claims that the defendants manipulated the tabulation process to inflate votes for the APNU+AFC coalition and deflate those for the PPP/C.
