The 2020 elections trial on Thursday centred on a video recording of Police questioning former Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo, who admitted to making two separate declarations during the contentious tabulation process but flatly refused to explain how he arrived at the disputed figures.In the video, played in court by the prosecution, investigators pressed Mingo on the numbers he declared on March 5, 2020, at the Ashmins Building. He was asked to account for disparities between more than 160 Statements of Poll (SOPs) submitted to him and the figures he publicly declared. But Mingo repeatedly declined to give clarity.“I have nothing to say about the figures,” he responded at one point.“Anything getting to the process, I would not say. The mythologies and processes, I would not go into,” Mingo said in the recording.When further pressed about his documents, investigators asked him to produce the SOPs to verify his version of events. Mingo said he had none in his possession.“I don’t know where the Police got their document from, but I know what I used.“I have no idea where the SOPs are because those were sent back to headquarters a long, long time ago,” he said.Despite refusing to provide specifics, Mingo acknowledged that he made two separate declarations of the Region Four results—one on March 5 and another on March 13, 2020.“I don’t want to get into details,” he told investigators, before adding, “It will be revealed.”The court also viewed video recordings capturing confrontations involving the then Minister of Public Service, Sonia Parag, and Aneishaw Mohamed. They detailed the events leading up to Mingo’s March 5 declaration, which caused heated exchanges to erupt. Both Parag and Mohamed are witnesses in the trial before Magistrate Faith McGusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court and had given sworn testimony.Parag, in the video, recalled entering the Ashmins Building on March 4, 2020, to monitor tabulation. She said Mingo had instructed the use of a spreadsheet, which produced numbers that did not match SOPs in her possession. Objections were raised by PPP agents and other political parties, and when Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, was called in, the SOPs he later provided confirmed the discrepancies.Parag further recounted the chaotic events of March 5, when Mingo abruptly announced he would make a declaration, sparking uproar inside the tabulation room. She said his words were inaudible, but a declaration signed by Mingo and Lawrence was later posted on GECOM’s website.Mohamed described the declaration as “heavily objected to,” noting that much of what Mingo said during the announcement could not be heard.The prosecution then introduced Police Sergeant David Samnarine, who testified that he was tasked with recording interviews during the investigation.Two other video recordings featuring defendants Carol Smith-Joseph and Volda Lawrence were also shown in court. Both were accompanied by their lawyer, Nigel Hughes, and invoked their right to remain silent.Nine individuals are currently before the court, charged with conspiring to manipulate the election results in favour of APNU+AFC in an attempt to deny victory to the PPP. Those charged include former government minister Volda Lawrence, former Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield, former Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo, and former Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers, among others.The trial continues on Friday.The post Mingo admits to making two declarations but refuses to give details in Police interview appeared first on News Room Guyana.