Poll officials rigged counting: Witness
By JASON SOM KAUT
The Madang National Court last Wednesday heard evidence alleging that the counting process for the Madang regional seat was rigged .
Scrutineers for Madang Regional candidates Michael Langa and Barnabas Nalon, alleged that polling officials rigged the counting process at the HolySpirit counting centre, seeing 6,767 possible votes for Mr Yama not being counted.
The trial between Mr Yama and Governor Sir Arnold Amet goes into day five today.
Lawyer representing Mr Yama, Bernard Lomai, is expected to wind down today with his presentation of witnesses, while Counsel representing Sir Arnold, Roger Maguire and Prof John Nongorr are expected to present their witnesses next week.
The two gave evidence relating to ground seven of an eight-ground petition which alleged that returning officer for Madang regional seat Kila Ralai, six returning officers for the open Electorate, polling officials and other election officials involved in the 2007 Madang regional electorate made errors and omissions in the counting process.
Mr Yama alleged that this was done with the intention of allowing Sir Arnold Amet to win the election.
Taking the witness stand, Mr Langa claimed that after the first elimination, Mr Yama had 18,989 votes but after final count of first elimination this was 6,767 votes less.
He said he raised the matter at the counting centre but nothing was done about it.
Presenting a diagram in court, he alleged that no informal votes were removed from Sir Arnold’s box.
“I saw the counting official responsible for Peter Yama’s votes place 6,767 of his votes into a plastic bag,” Mr Langa claimed, reading from a document he had not presented in court that saw Prof Nongorr objected to the document tendered to court officials.
Mr Langa further alleged that he saw counting officials putting informal votes into candidate’s boxes instead of placing them into the informal vote’s tray.
Mr Nalon said he had heard the issue being raised at the counting centre on Mr Yama’s missing 6,767 votes.
During cross examination by Prof Nongorr, Mr Nalon could not recall the day the incident happened and declined to answer questions posed by Prof Nongorr that he had not mentioned in his affidavit.
Justice Sakora overruled ordering Mr Nalon to answer the questions.
Mr Nalon alleged that proper quality checks were not done for each witness but later agreed that quality checks were done after explanation by Prof Nongorr.
Mr Nalon also alleged that he had gone to the airport in the company of two polling officials and two other scrutineers to pick up last two ballot boxes for counting.
Referring to paragraphs 15, 16 and 17 of Mr Nalon’s affidavit that claimed he had gone to the airport to pick up the ballot boxes in the company of a Mr Muge Yas, Prof Nongorr told Mr Nalon that Mr Yas would deny going to the airport in his company, when he takes the witness stand next week.
Mr Nalon responded ,alleging that Mr Yas was lying.
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