LAST Saturday, Leader of the Opposition and General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Mr. Bharrat Jagdeo, announced that the opposition party that he represents will not cooperate with the house-to-house registration process. PPP Presidential candidate, Irfaan Ali, then led a protest outside the headquarters of the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM). Additionally, the Guyana Chronicle has been informed by GECOM’s registration staff that in some cases, they are being followed by men on bicycles who are discouraging Guyanese from registering. The staff have reported feeling uncomfortable and intimidated by that development. The Guyana Chronicle condemns in the strongest terms the transparent attempt by the opposition to frustrate the credible election of a legitimate government.

The Official List of Electors (OLE) commonly known as the “voters list,” is the starting point of elections in Guyana. In other words, the list is the foundation upon which the entire electoral process is constructed. It follows that a list which is bloated or otherwise inaccurate cannot result in elections which are credible, nor can such elections produce a government that is not only legitimate, but perceived to be legitimate.
Therefore, the PPP’s position that elections be held based on a list that is known to be flawed is puzzling; one would have thought that the Leader of the Opposition would have supported credible elections that could come about only by use of a voters’ list that is clean, accurate, trusted, and honest.

As things are, PPP officials, through their public relations machinery, are attempting to confuse citizens and obfuscate the ‘big picture.’ Officials appear to be trying to achieve that dishonourable objective by releasing conflicting statements, and seemingly confusing directives to their supporters. The apparently nonsensical call for a PPP boycott of the house-to-house registration process is a glaring example of that dubious tactic. Of course, it should be known and must be emphasized that if one refuses to be registered, then one will be unable to vote because that name will not be on the voters’ list. It is, therefore, in the interest of every Guyanese to ensure that he or she is registered to vote. Citizens should refuse to be misled by self-serving politicians who want to get into power by dishonest, corrupt, and fraudulent means.

It was mentioned that PPP officials are attempting to distract Guyanese from paying attention to the ‘big picture.’ It is the position of this newspaper that the ‘big picture’ is what really matters most. And, what is the ‘big picture’? Simply put, it is the fact that a credible and accurate voters’ list does not currently exist; the last list, which expired on April 30, no longer represents the voting population of Guyana. There are allegedly some 200,000 persons on that old list who should not be there. In addition, many young people who have reached voting age are absent from that list. It is clear that from its actions the PPP wants dead people to vote, and wants to deny young people the opportunity to cast a ballot. The ‘big picture’ is that the PPP wants to steal an election through dishonest means based on a list that does not represent, by any stretch, Guyana’s voters. Citizens should resist such attempts by the PPP.

All eligible Guyanese have the right to choose their government. All citizens of voting age have the inalienable entitlement to express their political will through the ballot. And, persons, particularly young people, should not allow any selfish, dishonest, unreliable, or deceitful politician to distract them from seeing the ‘big picture,’ nor deny them their right to vote in a credible election based on a reliable, valid, and trustworthy list.