Time ticking away

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TWO days to go before the return of writs, only half of the 118 seats have been declared (as of last night), with counting again being held up in various electorates.
This is despite the directive from Electoral Commissioner Simon Sinai that Returning Officers should not entertain any more petitions or protests until after the issue of writs. The return of writs which was originally scheduled for July 29 was last week moved to Aug 12, but this week brought forward to Friday, Aug 5.
The extension to the deadline was to allow time for electorates lagging behind in their counting process last week to complete their work at least by tomorrow.
Electoral Commissioner Simon Sinai could not be contacted for comment yesterday but said on Sunday that he was “comitted to delivering” the General Election 2022 (GE22).
“The additional time to complete the counting and delivering the writs will provide greater certainty to stakeholders as the counting process is completed,” he said in a statement.
Provinces such as Southern Highlands, Gulf, Chimbu and Jiwaka have not progressed the counting process at all.
The National Capital District and Morobe had progressed a little to complete their counting.
Madang, Kabwum and Moresby North-West face more complicated issues such as protests and legal challenges.
There are now more snags to untangle and Friday’s extended return of writs deadline is looking difficult to meet.
Security forces engaged in the GE22 in Mendi, Southern Highlands withdrew yesterday because they said candidates were interfering in their operation.
Election Manager Alwin Jimmy said he was not happy with what was happening with only two days to go before the deadline.
“We are neutral people (Electoral Commission and security forces), now they are trying to control us,” he said.
Issues and complaints raised at the Chimbu provincial counting centre hindered progress.
Ivan Pomaleu, the chairman of the Inter-Department Election Committee and secretary to the Department of Prime Minister and National Executive Council, said Governor-General Grand Chief Sir Bob Dadae had to extend the deadline “because counting and declarations have been slow”.
“In a democratic process, we expect disruptions by candidates and their supporters, and there have been disputes and petitions,” Pomaleu said.
“Those are best handled by the Electoral Commission who has the powers to consider and or direct for counting to proceed after disputes are registered.”