<div dir="auto">Thanks Ashok for the clarification. However, I have an observation;<div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto"><ul style="font-family:sans-serif;font-size:12.8px"><li style="line-height:normal">All open positions shall be subject to an election process even if there is only one candidate. In that event, <b>if the option [none of the above] got more votes than <font color="#2196f3">the only candidate</font></b><font color="#2196f3">,</font> then the seat shall be considered vacant and the Board will be requested to apply provisions of the Bylaws to temporarily fill the vacant seat.</li></ul></div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">From the highlighted, this was explicitly stated and can be interpreted to be applicable if there was <b>only</b> <b>one</b> <b>candidate.</b> This was clearly not the case for the Western Africa seat so the [<i>human, visible, touchable and real</i>] candidate with the highest votes should be declared winner, not a [<i>virtual and invisible</i>], None of the Above, IMHO.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">Best!</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto"></>Tim</div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On May 17, 2018 5:19 PM, "Ashok" <<a href="mailto:ashok@afrinic.net">ashok@afrinic.net</a>> wrote:<br type="attribution"><blockquote class="quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
  
    
  
  <div text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
    Dear Members and Community,<br>
    Mt views have been sought on the matter under reference.<br>
    Please find same hereunder.<br>
    <br>
    <div class="m_5868599192861511945moz-cite-prefix">On 17/05/2018 14:04, B
      <p class="MsoNormal"><b><u>The
            Election
            Process and last AGMM.</u></b></p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The appointment of
        Directors is
        carried out during an AGMM of the Company –Art 13.1 of the
        constitution.</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The election of
        the Directors is
        carried out in terms of Art 13.2 of the constitution which
        refers expressly to the
        election process approved by the Board.</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">Moreover<span>  </span>Art 10.2 of the
        Constitution refers to
        precedent applied during an AFRINIC election and which de facto
        become part of
        the election guidelines. </p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The election
        process<span>  </span>as it stands
        today is the one which was
        applied during<span>  </span>the
        elections held during
        the last AGMM without any opposition.</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">This is what it
        provides:</p><div class="quoted-text">
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal"><b><span>9.2 Paper Ballot on
            Election Day</span></b></p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal"><span>The voting conducted during the Annual General Members'
          Meeting is
          carried out via paper ballots containing a list of candidate
          names and a ballot
          number. Prior to the vote, all members present or participants
          holding a proxy
          will be requested to register and validate their membership
          status.</span></p>
      </div><ul type="disc">
        <ul type="circle">
          <ul type="square"><div class="quoted-text">
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>Voters should
                only vote for one candidate per category/region. Each
                mark on a ballot paper represents one vote. A ballot
                with more than one mark per category/region will be
                considered spoilt, and not be counted.</span></li>
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>The ballot paper
                should provide voters with the option to not vote for
                any candidate (a.k.a. "None of the Above").</span></li>
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>This will be a
                secret ballot election. An inclusion of any personal
                data on the ballot paper will invalidate the vote and
                will be counted as spoilt.</span></li>
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>Elections will
                be closed as soon as the last member or proxy present in
                the meeting room casts his/her vote. Candidates with the
                highest number of votes in each category will be
                declared winners.</span></li>
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>In the event of
                a tie for an open position, voting for that position
                will be repeated (Only by paper ballot) the same day
                until there is a winner.</span></li>
            <li class="MsoNormal" style="color:black;line-height:normal"><span>All open
                positions shall be subject to an election process even
                if there is only one candidate. In that event, if the
                option [none of the above] got more votes than the only
                candidate, then the seat shall be considered vacant and
                the Board will be requested</span><span>
              </span><span>to apply
                provisions of the Bylaws to temporarily fill the vacant
                seat</span></li>
          </div></ul>
        </ul>
      </ul>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The last amendment of the election
        guidelines introduced
        the voting option “ None of the Above”. –(Vide second bullet
        point above.)Those
        voters who have cast their votes for “ None of the Above” have
        done so in
        compliance with the prevailing<span> 
        </span>constitution <span> </span>and
        these are thus
        valid votes. Every voter was aware of the new option.<span></span></p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The election
        guidelines are clear
        as to what happens when the “ None of the Above” option has a
        majority.- (Vide
        last bullet point above.)</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">The election
        guidelines must be
        read as a whole and all the provisions read together.</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">Legal Counsel
        –AFRINIC</p>
      <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:normal">17.05.2018</p>
      oubakar Barry wrote:<br>
    </div>
    <blockquote type="cite"><div class="elided-text">
      <div dir="ltr"> <span></span>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2">Hello Board and Legal
              Counsel,</font></font></p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">Good
                that Omo spotted this. </span></font></font>
        </p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">It’s
                a matter of applying the board election process adopted
                by the board
                according to section 13.2 of the bylaws. </span></font></font>
        </p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB"><a href="https://afrinic.net/en/community/elections/bod-election/process" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">https://afrinic.net/en/community/elections/bod-election/process</a>
                describes the process and section 9 spells out how to
                interpret the
                results in the case there are more than one candidate
                and in the case
                there is only one candidate. These two cases are
                addressed separately
                and differently.</span></font></font></p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">It’s
                important to hear from the Board and the Legal Counsel,
                as the
                elections can be challenged.</span></font></font></p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">Please
                advise.</span></font></font></p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">Regards.<br>
              </span></font></font></p>
        <p style="margin-bottom:0.08in"><font face="Arial, sans-serif"><font size="2"><span lang="en-GB">Boubakar</span></font></font></p>
        <div class="gmail_extra"><br>
          <div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, May 16, 2018 at 5:24 PM, Omo
            Oaiya <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:Omo.Oaiya@wacren.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Omo.Oaiya@wacren.net</a>></span>
            wrote:<br>
            <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
              <div style="word-wrap:break-word">
                <div>Greetings All,</div>
                <div><br>
                </div>
                <div>I am looking at the BoD election process and it
                  seems to me that the recent e-mail from the Board
                  Chair seeking nominations for vacant seats should not
                  be extended to Western Africa.  </div>
                <div><br>
                </div>
                <div>The particular clause I am referring to is in 9.2
                  - <a href="https://afrinic.net/en/community/elections/bod-election/process" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">https://afrinic.net/en/community/elections/bod-election/process</a></div>
                <div>
                  <blockquote type="cite">
                    <ul style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)">
                      <li><br class="m_5868599192861511945m_-4659973576612295384Apple-interchange-newline">
                        Elections will be closed as soon as the last
                        member or proxy present in the meeting room
                        casts his/her vote. Candidates with the highest
                        number of votes in each category will be
                        declared winners</li>
                    </ul>
                  </blockquote>
                </div>
                <div>
                  <div>I see from the list for West Africa that the
                    candidate with the highest number of votes should
                    have been declared winner and this is Dr Ousmane
                    Tessa.  (btw, Dr Adewale Adedokun needs his name
                    spelt correctly)</div>
                </div>
                <div><br>
                </div>
                <div>
                  <blockquote type="cite">
                    <p style="margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)"><br>
                      <b>Western Africa - Seat 2</b></p>
                    <p style="margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)">Dr
                      Adelawe Abedekon - 43</p>
                    <p style="margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)">Dr
                      Ousmane Moussa Tessa - 56</p>
                    <p style="margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)">None
                      of the above - 78</p>
                    <p style="margin-top:5px;margin-bottom:5px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)"><i>Result:
                        The seat is vacant</i></p>
                    <div><br>
                    </div>
                  </blockquote>
                </div>
                <div><br>
                </div>
                <div>The results from the other regions are valid and
                  supported by the following clause as they had one
                  candidate. </div>
                <div>
                  <blockquote type="cite">
                    <ul style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,FreeSans,sans-serif;font-variant-ligatures:normal;background-color:rgb(238,238,238)">
                      <ul>
                        <li>All open positions shall be subject to an
                          election process even if there is only one
                          candidate. In that event, if the option [none
                          of the above] got more votes than the only
                          candidate, then the seat shall be considered
                          vacant and the Board will be requested to
                          apply provisions of the Bylaws to temporarily
                          fill the vacant seat. </li>
                      </ul>
                    </ul>
                  </blockquote>
                  <br>
                </div>
                <div>Can AfriNIC and the nomcom please clarify?   We
                  should not deprive Dr Tessa of a rightful win ….
                  especially in the circumstances we find ourselves.</div>
                <span class="m_5868599192861511945HOEnZb"><font color="#888888">
                    <div><br>
                    </div>
                    <div>Omo</div>
                  </font></span></div>
              <br>
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              <br>
            </blockquote>
          </div>
          <br>
        </div>
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          <div dir="ltr"><br>
          </div>
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    <br>
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