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Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) employee, Michelle Miller, who was arrested by the police on August 26, 2020, in relation to the ongoing investigation into the 2020 Elections, has detailed her experience with the police which she says amounts to breaches of several of her rights.
In a statement on Tuesday released by the Law Offices of Latoya Roberts & Eusi Anderson Esq., she told of her engagements with the police.
Since September 14, 2020, Miller, who suffers from chronic hypertension, has had to report every day from Monday to Friday to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters at Eve Leary. She has consistently been doing as asked.
However, on Friday, October 16, 2020, she went to report to the CID as normal and was informed that, in furtherance to the police investigation, she had to remain for the police to conduct a video/audio interview.
She requested the presence of her attorney, Latoya Roberts and after this was granted she was asked over 45 questions. In her statement she said that on three occasions the allegation was put to her that between March 2-5 she conspired with Region Four Returning Officer (RO), Clairmont Mingo and others to commit electoral fraud by calling out numbers from a spreadsheet instead of the Statement of Polls which resulted in the APNU/AFC being declared the winners of the 2020 Regional and General Elections.
“On all occasions, I denied the said allegations, as I never called out numbers from any spreadsheet during the said Election. I also informed Corporal Hinds that my duties at all times during the Election period was to ensure that meals and materials were provided to the individuals working in the office. I denied being a Registration Officer as same was not my duty, and I also denied taking any instructions from Clairmont Mingo or anyone else at Ashmins Building during the time period in question to assist with the commission of any act that would constitute electoral fraud,” Miller said.
During her interview, she iterated her health condition and the fact that it was getting late into the hours of sunset and that she is a Seventh-Day Adventist. Seventh-Day Adventists follow the biblical teaching of resting on the seventh day of the week, the Sabbath, which begins from sunset on Friday evening to sunset on Saturday evening. During this period, they refrain from secular activities and forms of work and dedicate the 24-hour period to fellowship and worshiping God.
Miller said that though she expressed her religion to the police officers, she was informed that she had to return to the CID on Saturday at 7:30 hours for a further interview to be conducted.
“I immediately protested the directive and pointed out the fact that I am Seventh-day Adventist, and that Saturday was my day of worship. I made these protests to Corporal Hinds and Sergeant McBean, but they both stated that only ASP. Caesar could change the instructions given,” Miller detailed.
“My Attorneys-at-law, Mr. Eusi Anderson and Ms. Latoya Roberts, also protested the directive and requested that I report of Sunday instead and be allowed to enjoy my Constitutional right to freedom of worship, but their protests too went unheeded. I then asked to speak to Mr. Caesar and repeated my request to him, while my Attorneys petitioned him on my behalf asking if I could report on Sunday or Monday instead. However, Mr. Caesar stated that he had to go to church on Sunday, and that the police had a deadline to work with so I could not report on Monday.”
When Miller reported to the CID on Saturday, as requested, and at the stipulated time with her attorney, they were made to wait for over three hours for the interview to be conducted.
As she waited, Miller began feeling very anxious and frustrated knowing that her right to observe the tenets of her faith was being trampled upon. Being one who suffers from chronic hypertension, she checked her blood pressure 10:20 am as she tried to calm herself and found that the reading was 168/112, an increase from the reading she had gotten before she left home.
Miller stated: “When I was permitted to speak I informed the said officers that I had already spoken to police officers in relation to the said matter on three separate occasions, and though I had always cooperated with the police the same courtesy was not being extended to me. I also informed the said rank that I was feeling unwell and that my blood pressure was high. I further stated to him that since I had already told the police everything that I knew, and since I had no involvement in the allegations being made to me, I would reserve my right to remain silent throughout the interview.”
The interview eventually ended at 11:04 am after a series of questions were posed to Miller, each of which she responded to by informing the police that she reserved the right to remain silent. She was permitted to leave the CID Headquarters but Miller strongly believes that the police have breached several of her rights to date and appear to be “acting with impunity”.
Miller also pointed to instances where the police kept her waiting for hours with no access to the food she must consume to meet her specific health requirements.
She pointed out that, as of Saturday, October 17, 2020, she was interviewed by various police officers in relation to the electoral matter on four separate occasions without being charged.
