Symister says current process of counting ballots is not broken and needs no fix, but is a cultural tradition that should be kept

As Supervisor of Elections Ian Hughes advocates for legislative
changes to the procedure for counting ballots after an election, Leon
Chaku Symister has countered that he does not see the need for this
change – asking “Why fix the process if it is not broken?”
 
Symister, the United Progressive Party (UPP) spokesperson on legal
matters, says the practice of counting ballots at a central location is
a cultural issue that gets the people involved; and, in his opinion, it
is more transparent.
 
He says that Antiguans and Barbudans appear to be having a
problem holding onto their strong traditions, and the counting
process is one of these.

If the Administration agrees with Hughes’ proposal, then all political
parties will have to abide by any new legislation that is passed.
However, Symister says, he does not believe there will be much
support for this change.
 
He says that such a move would be costly for the Government, since
it might have to hire more staff to facilitate the counting – which, the
law currently stipulates, must be undertaken by the returning
officer.
 
Symister says that a larger number of returning officers for each
polling station would be needed, or the supervising officers might
have to do the counting.  

What might be needed, Symister muses, is some type of mechanism
that improves the efficiency and the speed of the counting process.