THE People’s National Congress (PNC) has not changed its proclivity for rigging elections, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) said as it celebrated the 48 death anniversary of Jagan Ramessar and Bholanauth Parmanand who were killed while protecting ballot boxes.
Following the horrific incident, they became known as the Ballot Box Martyrs.
The PPP, in a statement to mark the occasion, said the young men were shot and killed while part of a group of residents who had gathered to prevent the removal of ballot boxes from the place of poll during that year’s general elections.
“This horrific incident occurred during the oppressive and authoritarian rule of the People’s National Congress (PNC) regime.

Their deaths represent another dark day in our nation’s history and are demonstrative of yet another act of rigging by the PNC to hold on to power illegally, with the most recent being their five-month-long attempt to rig the March 2nd, 2020 General and Regional Elections. Having refused to abide by the constitutionally mandated processes following the successfully passed no-confidence motion on December 21, 2018, and having violated the Constitution on numerous occasions during their tenure in office from 2015, it was clear that the PNC, under the guise of APNU+AFC, has not shed an iota of its proclivity to rig elections,” the PPP said.
The PPP said it recognises the selfless sacrifices of the two brave and young heroes and urged that Guyanese continue to remain vigilant in safeguarding the country’s Constitution and democratic tenets against all efforts by “those bent on suppressing our freedoms”.