Dispute over boxes delays WHP count

By JAMES APA GUMUNO
THE elimination for the Western Highlands provincial seat will not start until the Electoral Commission responds to petitions from regional candidates on the 21 ballot boxes of Hagen open that have set aside, provincial returning officer Joseph Neng said yesterday.
Speaking at the Kimininga police barracks while receiving a petition from regional candidates living in the Hagen Central electorate, Neng said quality checks for the regional ballot papers for three electorates of Dei, Mul-Baiyer and Tambul-Nebilyer had been carried out and completed.
He said they had not touched Hagen open as they awaited Electoral Commissioner Andrew Trawen to decide on the 21 ballot boxes containing 31,000 regional and 31,000 open ballot papers set aside before the declaration of William Duma as member-elect for the seat on July 20.
He told regional candidates John Piel, David Yak, Max Kumbamong, Danny Gonol, media personnel, security forces and provincial election steering committee chairman Malcolm Culligan that the Electoral Commission’s lawyer had made his own investigation into the 21 ballot boxes and sent a report to Trawen.
Neng told the candidates he could not make a decision, saying it was something for the Electoral Commissioner to decide.
In their petition, the regional candidates demanded the 31,000 regional ballot papers contained in the Hagen Open ballot boxes set aside must be counted.
The candidates said the 21 ballot boxes represented their rest houses and they would be unfairly treated if the boxes were not counted.
They said a declaration has been made for the Hagen Open seat without the counting of the 21 disputed ballot boxes.
They said that this is a matter for Hagen Open Returning Officer Gordon Wimb, the Electoral Commissioner and the Hagen Open candidates to address.