« Discrepancies in the recapitulation of votes carried out on counting day by the Returning Officer for Constituency No 19 have been noted. I wish to place on record that the discrepancies deduced from the recapitulation of votes received by the candidates were never the grounds on which elections in Constituency No 19 were being challenged by the Petitioner (Jenny Adebiro).
“However, notwithstanding the grounds on which the Petition was based, and without admitting the averments set out in the election petition, in light of these discrepancies, I have decided not to oppose the prayer for recount of all valid ballot papers counted in respect of the Petitioner and Respondent No 1 (Ivan Collendavelloo).
“In doing so, I am being guided as I have always been, by the values of transparency and fairness. I am also mindful of the fact that public confidence in the election process is key and my stand is dictated, as it has always been, by the need to leave no doubt about the integrity of the counting process in general, and more particularly in Constituency No 19.
“This being said, this declaration should not be construed as an admission of the averments set out in the Petition .»