Moodie denies Red Cross elections flawed… says new executive will address issues

Amid claims of irregularities, newly elected vice president of the Trinidad and Tobago Red Cross Society (TTRCS), Edward Moodie, says concerns raised during the organisation’s election on Saturday will be addressed. He also denies that the elections were flawed.

Speaking to Guardian Media yesterday, Moodie said the new executive is committed to transparency and pledged to review the objections that were submitted by members.

“We had an independent election team, and there were two objections which were noted. Five minutes after the president was elected, she met with the individuals who raised them and promised that the executive would review the matters,” Moodie said.

He also pointed to measures taken before the poll, including extended deadlines for nominations and memberships.

“The process was smooth apart from two objections. In my opinion, it was done professionally,” he said.

Moodie added that financial audits were presented at the meeting and uploaded to the TTRCS website. He said outstanding financial issues from previous years remain but are being addressed.

Looking ahead, Moodie said the new executive plans to partner with corporate Trinidad and Tobago to host health fairs and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training across the country.

“We want to strengthen health fairs, HIV awareness programmes, and migrant healthcare, while expanding disaster response training. We also want to work with institutions such as the police service, given their role as first responders,” he said.

Despite objections from senior members of the TTRCS during the elections at Hillview College, Tunapuna, on Saturday, Anne-Marie Quammie-Alleyne was elected president. Outgoing president Jill de Bourg, who had served since 2018, did not seek re-election.

However, some members claimed the election lacked transparency. They said attempts to raise points of order were rejected and members were instructed to submit queries in writing. Others said they only learned of the nominees on election day.

The media was also barred from entering the compound, and some members expressed frustration with the process.

In December 2024, an International Federation of the Red Cross report concluded that the TTRCS was not functioning properly and faced serious management, financial, and governance challenges. The following month, the then government suspended the society’s $730,000 annual subvention due to outstanding audits.