THE United States Government, through its Embassy here, will be contributing the sum of US$325,000 towards financial support for the May 11 General and Regional Elections in Guyana.

The sum at reference is specifically in support of the work of the Observer missions organised by the Organisation of American States (OAS) and the Elections Assistance Bureau (EAB).

Speaking with the media yesterday at City Hall after observing Nomination Day procedures, US Embassy Charge d’Affaires Mr Bryan Hunt said the Embassy will be involved in the observation process of the May 11 General and Regional Elections.

Asked about the total amount the United States will be directly injecting into the elections assistance programme, Hunt said that for the Observer missions, the OAS and the EAB will be splitting US$325,000, which is the equivalent of G$65M.
He also added that the Embassy is looking to assist the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) with its voter education process, and voter outreach efforts, but the final dollar figure has not yet been determined.
In a press statement late yesterday, the United States Embassy in Georgetown said that the assistance being given to the election process is to ensure fair, free and credible elections in Guyana on May 11.
The Embassy said that both Observer missions have proven track records of successful elections monitoring, and are widely respected.
“The U.S. Government is pleased to support the two organisations in bringing their credible and critical analysis to Guyana’s 2015 electoral process,” the release said, adding: “The United States of America continues to advocate globally for the expansion and strengthening of democratic governance.  Regular free and fair elections are critical in this regard.”

It said too that the Guyana Elections Commission has established a strong track record of ensuring ‘free, fair, and credible’ elections for the people of Guyana, and the US has full faith and confidence in its ability to do so once again in 2015.
Meanwhile, on the issue of the conduct of candidates on the campaign trail, the senior US diplomat said it is his expectation that all candidates contesting the polls would adhere to the soon-to-be-released Code of Conduct by the Guyana Elections Commission for the candidates.
He also stated that given the present political climate here, he is of the “strong view” that candidates should do all that is necessary to avoid making statements that can be seen as derogatory on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, religion and sexual orientation.

By Leroy Smith