By: Staff Writer
May 18, 2021
Former Grenada opposition leader says he was cheated in the last election where his party was swept clean for a second time in as many elections, but is still mulling a comeback.
Nazim Burke, former leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), speaking on a radio broadcast said about the electoral process in Grenada after the country’s last election where some people were wrongly registered and other election irregularities that: “After the election, the electoral officer wrote to us and said yes, he acknowledges that it was a mistake. These people were wrongly registered. That was that. I have that in writing.
Burke said the NDC filed 869 objections for the New Hampshire constituency, 24 for Boca and 10 for Tempe.
The former minister for finance also said: “Leading up to the election, for example, in New Hampshire, which was the main problem, we found 69 people living in St. George, North-West, who are registered in the North-East. We identified them, we prepared a list, we brought it down a formal objection presented to the registration officer and said: These people are not living here. We have proof. Take the names off the list, we are objecting to them.”
The NDC, who lost their third consecutive election in a clean sweep, with the first in 2013 where the NDC was the incumbent government where Burke served as the minister for finance, but now he is claiming election irregularities and have involved lawyers because he wishes to establish integrity in the electoral process.
He even alleges some skulduggery with cloak and dagger espionage with suspicious cars rolling up at polling stations after the polls had closed, but offered no proof to say or even suggest something was done illegally.
Mr Burke also said: “You cannot run this thing as a booby trap. Yeah, people must know what to expect in the electoral office, it must be seen as independent of the political party and independent of the government and independent of the incumbent, because it cannot be that you’re going into a general election, feeling that you’re walking into a dark tunnel and you don’t know what’s going to be altered the other end.
Further casting aspersions on the electoral office, Mr Burke charged: “This is what people are feeling when they get the impression that the electoral office has been controlled by the government is extremely important, and something that I believe all of the political parties have to be paying attention to absolutely.
Regardless of the election clean sweeps, Mr Burke also said that he has entertained the idea of making a comeback to lead the NDC into another election, considering that the last elected leader of the NDC, Franca Bernadine, resigned due to health reasons.
Mr Burke said that while he is uncertain of what he will do about running for leader of the NDC again, “Several people are approaching me and so on and talking and I say to them, I’m praying on these things… I have always felt that I love Grenada, I have always felt that I want to make a contribution to the development of the country. That’s why I came back to Grenada in the first place.
“I was living in Canada for many years and that desire remains to continue to help and to develop and contribute in any way I can. Right at the same time. You don’t want to force yourself on anybody, you don’t want to force yourself on the people. So I listen and I’m sure that God will guide me in the right direction.”
One political analyst has jumped out at Burke and said that his window has passed and since he failed already, the people may not be receptive to him again. Another analyst feels more sinister and said that Burke may have been in the pocket of current Prime Minister Keith Mitchell and that the 2018 was a set-up and a fake election as Burke never truly had the desire to beat Mitchell for whatever reason.
Whatever seems to be the case, Burke has popped up again and yet again the anti-Mitchell cries are growing feverish in the country again, despite Mr Mitchell having had convincing victories in the last three elections in Grenada.
Grenada’s next general election should be held in 2023.