THE latest assurance from Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission, Dr Steve Surujbally, of the Commission’s preparedness to conduct either local government or national elections three months after being advised by President Donald Ramotar to do so, is to be welcomed with the understanding that it is linked with a commitment to improve a much needed public education campaign on relevant arrangements.Dr. Surujbally may not have been pleased over the initial public concerns expressed by General Secretary of the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic, Mr. Clement Rohee, who is also Minister of Home Affairs, about perceived serious errors in the released Preliminary List of Electors (PLE).
However, when Mr. Rohee subsequently revealed that there were “thousands” of names of dead Guyanese on the officially circulated PLE, (among them first President Arthur Chung), public interest quickly sharpened. And cynicism gave way, hopefully, to new attitudes by those who are being paid out of public funds to do what’s officially and correctly expected of them.
By last week, the main opposition APNU (A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) was also anxious to let it be known that it too had concerns over ‘dead’ people whose names are included on the PLE as released by the GECOM.
No one, as far as we are aware, has yet accused GECOM of winking at, much less encouraging, any kind of incompetence or mischief that could result in a flawed final electoral register for coming elections—local or national. Indeed, we sincerely hope that the situation does not deteriorate to that stage. The end result could be quite dangerous for electoral democracy and national stability, as Chairman Surujbally and the experienced commissioners would be quite aware.
The emotional “talk” by those courting media headlines about the governing party running scared of likely defeat at new elections, hence its ringing of the so-called alarm bell over the authenticity of the PLE, is not merely careless. It is both provocative and insulting and GECOM should not be distracted on what NEEDS to be done to ensure availability of an authentic electoral register, and on time for public scrutiny—ahead of the increasingly expected snap general elections.
In the meanwhile there must be genuine efforts at cooperation, in Guyana’s national interest, between GECOM and the three parliamentary parties as well as by non-governmental organisations and other sectoral interests committed to free and fair elections and conducted in a climate of law and order.