STATEMENTS by the Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) regarding the hosting of Local Government Elections (LGE) were considered to be “misleading and full of inaccuracies”, according to the Ministry of Communities. 

In a statement released recently, the Ministry responded to the PPP’s claim that the Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan had said that Local Government Elections “will be held in November 2015.”
In fact, the Communities Ministry cited that on June 26, 2015, in his address to the National Assembly, the Minister was quoted as saying, “Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to advise you and Members of this Honourable House that yesterday I met with officials of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and I indicated to them that we would like, ideally, for these elections to be held in November of this year.”
Secondly, the Ministry noted that the PPP’s contention that GECOM – the PPP claims is in a conspiracy with the Government – will claim that they are not ready for LGE has no merit.
It was noted that the Communities Ministry continues to engage GECOM, with a subsequent meeting on July 8, 2015 resulting in the Commission indicating that they will be prepared to conduct LGE within the considered timeframe, contingent on the passage of necessary legislation, and the delineation of the boundaries of only three of the Local Democratic Organs.
The next issue highlighted by the Ministry was an obstacle which the PPP said must be overcome before LGE could be held. This issue is the abovementioned delineations. According to the PPP’s statement, this exercise must be done by GECOM. However, this aspect of the statement by the Opposition party was deemed to be yet another untruth.
In fact, Article 4 (1) and 4 (2) of the Local Democratic Organs Act, Chapter 28:09, states that the power to make such delineations rests entirely with the Minister.
With there being only sixty-five Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs), the report by the PPP in their statement which made mention to seventy-one NDCs has also been recorded as an embarrassingly inaccurate statement.
As such, the Ministry is of the firm belief that the statement made by the party is false, it had no basis, and is in fact a concoction and fabrication intended to mislead the public.
“The facts are, the PPP had promised to hold LGE within one year of being re-elected in 2011; they failed and refused to do so. Local Government elections, which are constitutionally due every three years, have not been held since 1994, owing to the PPP’s obsession with concentrating power in the hands of a few. Local government elections have, in fact, been held only once in the last forty-five years. Clearly, this is unacceptable in a democracy,” the statement said.
Additionally, it was noted that the current Administration, unlike the previous regime, is committed to the rule of law. Reassuring the public that LGE will be held at the earliest possible date, preferably before the end of 2015, the Ministry further added that LGE will again be held within the next three years, with two LGEs being held within the five-year life-span of this Administration. “The Government is determined to reverse the PPP’s habit and culture of disenfranchising citizens,” the Communities Ministry said in their statement.
But the PPP’s statement, according to the Ministry, apart from revealing a habit of “obfuscation and deception”, indicates a fear of good, democratic governance and a terror at placing political power where it rightfully belongs; in the hands of the Local Democratic Organs which represent the true will of the people.