MERE hours before the critical local government election, the PNM has been reported to two national institutions for plans to hand out tax refunds.
The respective heads of the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) and Integrity Commission have been sent letters stating the eleventh-hour tax handouts amount to a breach of relevant laws.
Project Manager Hershael Ramesar told the EBC Chair that the Government had flouted Clause 97 of the Representation of the People Act.
The clause forbids attempts to influence voting behaviour by providing food, drink, entertainment, or provisions.
Ramesar attached a screenshot of an announcement by the Ministry of Finance of the planned payout of 33,436 cheques.
He said the move was “a calculated and audacious attempt to exert undue influence upon the electoral process.”
The “calculated timing and nature of this pronouncement” raises suspicion of a breach of Clause 96 of the Act, Ramesar said.
He noted that the EBC is “vested with a solemn duty of safeguarding electoral integrity.”
As a result, he called on the Commission to “embark upon a comprehensive investigation into this unambiguous assault on the integrity of the democratic process.”
Ramesar asked the EBC to mandate the immediate revelation of the identities and locations of the tax beneficiaries.
In the letter to the Integrity Commission, he also called for an enquiry leading to full disclosure with respect to those receiving tax refunds.
As “the guardian of probity,” the Commission must “assert its authority.
“I beseech you to act resolutely and swiftly in investigating this flagrant compromise of integrity,” Ramesar said.
