1&G coronation -according

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from the S/293 Branch TGWU END THE SOCIAL CONTRACT NOW!

LEAGUE

May Day Meeting Sunday May 1 at 5pm (after the demonstration)

KENILWORTH HOTEL Great Russell Street Speakers include:

Alan Thornett, Shop Stew; BLMC (in a personal capaci and other international speakers SUBSCRIBE!

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PICKETS AT THE NIGHT OUT restaurant in Birmingham were beaten up last Monday by a group of scabs organised by the management.

The violence followed a demonstration of 50 of the 333 scabs working in the restaurant to Transport House to hand in a petition.

Returning after the unsuccessful lobby one of the managers directed the scabs towards the picket-which was only manned by three girls, the rest of the picket having formed a counter-demonstration at Transport House. Jailr General Secretary has proven no exception.

Moss Evans, widely acknowledged as heir apparent to the Jones throne for the past three years was crowned last Thursday-thus ensuring the continuity of the Jones line (barring the unforeseen) • for the next fourteen years until Evans retires!

It is understood that the counting of the votes took place behind tightly closed doors. No candidate as far as we can discover was able to attend the actual count or set eyes on a ballot paper.

Contrary to rule, branches were not this time allowed to count the branch votes, but were instructed to send unopened ballot boxes to the unknown scrutineers at Regional Offices.

Then almost five weeks elapsed. Voting ended on March 19. But the result was not officially announced until April 21. For these five weeks it was unclear whether counting would be at Regional Offices or National Office. The discarded rule book offered no guidance.

By the beginning of April however, the capitalist press began on fact, they were remarkably accurate.

RULE The rule book states that "no candidate may be debarred from the count". Taking this at face value one of the candidates, Alan Thornett, wrote to his Regional Office asking to be present at the count.

He received a reply from Region S secretary, Brian Mathers, sayıng that since it was a national count Thornett should write to Jones.

A letter to Jones brought the reply that the count was at National Office on April 21. Thornett was invited to attend.

But on arriving at Transport House, he found there was not a ballot paper in sight. Instead, the Finance and General Purposes Committee of the General Executive Council were sitting with calculators, simply checking_ voting return sheets from Regional Offices!

So the mystery remains. Who counted the votes? When did they count them? Who appointed them as scrutineers?

TGWU Region Secretary.

But there is more complication. It is not even known whether the ballot papers still exist! The rule book says that the ballot papers must be kept for one month.

But it does not make clear in this case whether it means a month after declaration of the resuit or after the end of voting. Strangely in this election there was exactly one month and one day between the two.

It seems quite possible that while the F&GPC bent over their calculators for the "count" on April 21, the actual papers had already been consigned to Regional incinerators!

SCEPTICAL

We can surely be forgiven under these conditions if we admit to a degree of scepticism as to the results produced through such procedures.

The first big surprise is the 349,548 votes cast for Moss Evans, living embodiment of the Social Contract-one of the most unpopular policies foisted onto the working class for many years.

Less surprising is the 119,241 votes for runner-up John Cousins whose well-known name was boosted by a fraudulent press campaign claiming he opposed the Social Contract.

And no surprise are the 75,000 and 47,000 votes cast for Alex Kitson and Larry Smith. Kitson, the Broad Left nominee was named as the main 'left' contender by the press, while buses officer Smith drew on a big sectional vote. Both of course are full-time officials.

Tommy Riley, the SWP candidate received 27,000 votes. This is a good result, and perfectly credible when you consider that 8,579 votes were cast for Bennel -a left wing candidate but als unknown outside his own area an with no campaign behind him.

Moving down the list, two mor full-time officers were next in lin -Miller (Rubber workers) an Walsh (ACTSS).

But then, curiously, we fin three unknown names whose ele tion addresses said virtuall nothing- Bro. Fulton, Bro. Lyo and Bro. Dyos, with 17,315 14,010 and 11,919 respectivel And i only after this list, 13t out of 15 candidates, do we fin Alan Thornett with 11,493 i surely the most surprising result o all.

As the only nationally-know militant on the list, with • a lon record of struggle in the union an an election address which had bee enthusiastically received in number of areas, Thornett w widely tipped to equai or surpa the vote for the 'SWP's Riley Yet the only candidates belo Thornett on the official list a A. Moorhouse and D. Thatcher who never even submitted electio addresses!

SPOILED

The mystery is not helped b the announcement that there was massive 18,000 "spoiled balk papers" nationally-nearly as man as the votes cast for the ACTS officer!

One thing is clear from ther results. There remains a har struggle in the TGWU to establis ballot procedures in which demi cracy can be seen to be done, an where members can have confli ence that results actually reflect th wishes of the membership

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