Ivan Collendavelloo retains his seat in Constituency no. 19 (Stanley/Rose-Hill). The official results of the recount have announced by the Returning Officer, Kevin Moorghen at Notre Dame des Victoires School RCA in Rose-Hill during the afternoon of Tuesday 1st February 2022. The leader of Muvman Liberater has obtained 8,945 votes while the MMM candidate, Jenny Adebiro 8,865 votes, with a gap of 80 votes. In the aftermath of the General Elections of November 2019, the gap was 92 votes.
Recount exercise: Several anomalies have been detected
The exercise started at 10:40 am on Tuesday at the GMD Atchia College. However, some anomalies have been detected. It was first noted that there were only 28,096 ballots instead of 28,169, hence 73 less. Secondly, a ballot paper from Constituency no. 1 has been found among those from Constituency no. 19. Finally, 2 ballots not bearing the seal of the Office of the Electoral Commissioner have been found among the ballots.
On missing ballots: “Even if 73 votes were for Jenny, I would have still won”, says Ivan Collendavelloo
In a statement to the press this afternoon, the leader of Muvman Liberater has mentioned the issue of the 73 missing ballots. He said he has protested when he learned about the anomaly. As for the results, he said that if Jenny Adebiro had received the 73 votes, he would have still won the election anyways given that the recount results are in his favour by 80 votes. Ivan Collendavelloo says that he hopes this recount will dispel any doubts about his election. Today, he adds, things are clear.
The leader of Muvman Liberater also addressed his supporters once the results have been announced by the Returning Officer, Kevin Moorghen. Ivan Collendavelloo was highly critical of the Labour Party for allegedly pressuring the MMM to file an election petition to contest his victory in Constituency no. 19. He recalled that after the results were declared in 2019, the MMM had accepted the results in this Constituency. But for him, the Reds would have put pressure on MMM.
Anomalies detected after the recount: “Our legal team will make a decision“, says Reza Uteem
Jenny Adebiro’s legal representative has defined that the anomalies noted during Tuesday’s exercise at GMD Atchia College as “very serious”. He explained that Jenny Adebiro has made a formal request to the Acting Master and Registrar so as not to proceed with the declaration of results. Reza Uteem has added that Jenny Adebiro’s legal team will consult before announcing the way forward.
The defeated MMM candidate in Constituency No. 19 did not attend the announcement of the official results at the Notre Dame des Victoires school in Rose-Hill. For her, there were too many anomalies during the exercise. She said she did not concede defeat because of these anomalies. Jenny Adebiro also explained that she informed the Acting Master and Registrar of the glitches during the recount exercise.
Pravind Jugnauth : The Opposition does not accept defeat
Pravind Jugnauth: “The Opposition is a sore loser. The Opposition does not accept defeat and is spoiling the image of the country with their lies and demagogies. They show that they have no respect for anything in the country, demonstrating their lust for power. What was proclaimed then has been confirmed today. I congratulate comrade Ivan again on his victory.”
