Electoral Commissioner Patilias Gamato clarified in a media statement that the Returning Officer who declared Nick Kuman as Member-elect for Gumine Open electorate in Chimbu and signed the writ was Fredy Yaun and not the late Peter Kalpa.
He conveyed his sincere apologies to the immediate family, relatives and friends of the late Peter Kalpa who was the initial appointed and gazette Returning Officer for Gumine.
Commissioner Gamato went on to explain that it was an error on the part of his officers who prepared the statement for the media conference.
Gamato said he fully retracts the statement mentioning the late Returning Officer.
However, he explained that Nick Kuman won by a difference of 391 votes, according to the count supervisor Margaret Tokum.
The decision to remove 412 votes after final elimination from the leading candidate was the sole decision of the former returning Officer, Max Yomba.
