…President Granger confident of victory with coalition lists of candidates
…says Guyana will never again fall into hands of PPP

PRESIDENT David Granger, on Friday, said that he is confident that the APNU+AFC has submitted “the winning lists” of candidates to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to contest the Regional and General elections on March 2, 2020.

The President, accompanied by APNU+AFC Prime Ministerial Candidate, Khemraj Ramjattan and Director General at the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon submitted the party’s lists at the Umana Yana to Chief Elections Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield.
As Lowenfield signed off on the lists, he passed it on to a string of GECOM officers tasked with double checking or looking for other specific details.

Watching on were the entire GECOM commission led by Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh; numerous members of the diplomatic corps; and several Ministers of government including Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo.

The process went smoothly and, when completed, the CEO stood to shake the hand of the President and other representatives signalling his acceptance of the lists.
Exiting the Umana Yana, the President spoke with media operatives over the cheers of thousands of supporters who had earlier marched from the Parade Ground to show their support for the coalition.

He said he was satisfied with the process, noting that the lists submitted contain a balance of youth and gender.
“I’m very satisfied that we went through the process and we’ve got the best list and it’s a winning list. We have a proven record and the lists of persons that we have submitted, I’m very sure, will be able to do proud in the National Assembly and in the Regional Democratic Councils and, of course, in the Cabinet,” the President stated.

In a statement later released by the Coalition, the President added that the coalition has nominated candidates who enjoy the confidence of members of the APNU+AFC and its supporters.

He said that Guyanese can prepare to re-elect a government on March 2, which has a plan for development that will revive local democracy, rebalance the national economy and expose every Guyanese to the good life promised.
“We are guaranteed of the overwhelming support of Guyanese, based on our record over the past five years,” the President said.

“General and Regional Elections will determine your children’s future. We shall ensure a secure future for present and future generations. We shall ensure that our country does not ever again fall into the wrong hands. We shall not gamble with your children’s future. The APNU+AFC is the right choice. The future is bright. Let us continue to move forward. We shall fulfill our promise to provide a ‘good life’ for everyone.”

A “massive” attendance
Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle at the Umana Yana, Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo expressed his complete satisfaction with the number of APNU+AFC supporters who had turned out on their own to witness the process.
“This is unprecedented! This is my twelfth election and I’ve never seen anything like this before. Since 1964 I’ve been involved in elections and this is massive! This is an explosion of confidence in the APNU+AFC,” the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister was surrounded by supporters in green and gold who held flags high and chanted upbeat tunes for the coalition.
Around 11:30hrs, a large contingent of persons moved off from the Parade Ground beating drums, blowing horns and dancing to campaign songs crafted for the coming elections.
Speaking with media earlier on when she arrived at the venue, the GECOM Chair stated that it took a lot of hard work for the Commission to arrive at Nomination Day successfully.
“We’ve been working over Christmas and every night and up to yesterday we had an emergency meeting,” Singh said adding that she is confident that the Commission will be delivering free, fair and credible elections.

A successful Nomination Day 
Meanwhile, based on her observation of the process, US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch stated that everything went smoothly and she was happy to have her first experience of Nomination Day in Guyana.

“I was basically here the whole time and it was terrific to just see all of the parties present their information. It was a very fun afternoon in many ways,” she said.
Also commenting, British High Commissioner, Greg Quinn said: “I think it’s gone very well and I think GECOM and all the parties are to be congratulated for a very successful Nomination day.”

The APNU+AFC was the first party to hand in its list to the Commission.
They submitted a National Top-Up List which included at least 300 to 330 nominators countrywide and at least 42 candidates; a Geographical Constituency List which includes at least 150 to 175 nominators and no more than 45 candidates and a Regional Elections list which includes 150-175 nominators and 12 to 36 candidates.
Approved lists will be gazetted on January 19, 2020.