Dear Editor,
ALL the past riggings perpetrated by the PNC to thwart and destroy the will of the people are well documented and are now undeniable historical facts which can be accessed by anyone but what was even more well documented is the many attempts to rig the 2020 elections. The footages caught on camera and shown to the entire world and the reports from the observers both locally and internationally, bear graphic testimonies to the unrelenting shamelessness and barefacedness of the Coalition. It leaves us to wonder: What is stopping them from apologising to this nation?

The PNC rigged all the elections: 1968, 1973, 1980 and 1985 and the Referendum of 1978 and for five long months attempted to rig the 2020 elections. The old PNC riggers led by Granger erroneously felt that they could have applied the same rigging strategies with impunity, like they did before. However, they failed to realise not only will the international communities, the local organisations and the Guyanese masses never condoned any rigging but will never accept the installation of an illegal Government. What the PNC/AFC also failed to realise is that the PPP itself has undergone a massive metamorphosis which has zero tolerance for rigging or attempts to do so, led by the master strategist, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, and as President Irfaan Ali succinctly summed it up, ‘Never again shall we countenance, in our country, any attempt to deny the popular will of the people.’ This is the mindset of the PPP and will no longer be an easy walk over. Times have indeed changed! The PNC has not.

The Master Strategist, Dr Jagdeo, worked as a true leader of the people and almost on a daily basis exposed the failures, corruption, thievery and gross incompetence of the Coalition and there was no dearth of evidence which he provided in his weekly press conferences whilst Granger hid from the public believing in the infallibility of his rigging skills learnt from his mentor, the late Burnham.

This public sensitisation provided the basis for the no-confidence motion. Jagdeo with his great acumen and leadership skill deliberately planned and executed each and every step of the way leading to the no-confidence motion in December 2018. He not only ensured that elections were held, but carried out an incisive campaign which drew support from non-traditional PPP strongholds to guarantee the PPP’s victory. After the elections he carefully calculated his party’s approach and put into motion the plan to ensure that the attempts to rig do not bear fruit. On August 2, 2020, the PPP Government was sworn in after five long months of repeated attempts by the Coalition and its band of riggers to steal the 2020 General Elections. This is in stark contrast to the PPP which never rigged or attempted to rig an election. The party fought all their elections on strategies and on their proven track records, something which is alien to the PNC and the AFC. The PNC’s track record is replete with rigging.

The PNC is devoid of any strategy and all they ever did was to depend on their rigging machinery. Imagine a political party which has been around since 1957, more than 64 years, still has to depend on rigging and not their achievements as a government. This is because the PNC’s leadership lacks the vision to take the party into the future. Not surprisingly they even rigged their own internal elections and this again is well-documented. The AFC is no less. They also rigged their internal elections and lie and deceived their supporters and continued to change their manifesto or action plan like a true political chameleon. To the AFC, one time the PNC is bad and then another time the PNC is the saviour. No one does this best than Moses Nagamootoo. This is indeed pitiable. Today, the Coalition can no longer sing the corruption mantra to the public, as they did prior to 2015.

Whilst it is not a surprise that the old order of the PNC would cling to rigging since they lacked the skillset to govern, it is most disappointing that former PPP Executive members like Nagamootoo and Ramjattan would condone rigging and openly support it. Not only that, but they actually accused the PPP of rigging the 2020 Elections. No doubt the duo relentlessly fought the PNC for 28 years in the past but now they not only embraced the same PNC but adapt the very nefarious characteristics which they had abhorred. This no doubt removed the little vestige of trust and confidence which their small band of members and supporters had for them. Ramjattan actually testified to the public that the Russians rigged the 2020 Elections at the behest of the PPP whilst Nagamootoo had trouble with his maths soon after the NCM. Can you imagine that Nagamootoo had claimed that Dr Jagan, somewhere in the mountains had wanted to anoint him in his (Dr Jagan’s) place? The late Janet Jagan and the PPP knew him better! Ramjattan is no less. We now have a Coalition with leaders who cannot face the public anymore and will have to continue to hide behind posts on Facebook and a hapless camera in a TV station. In stark contrast, we have the PPP leaders who are on a daily basis engaging the public and resolving their problems. This is true leadership.

The Coalition need to realise that lies, deceit, ineptitude, thievery, extravagance, corruption and rigging are no longer the tools which can win an election. Their support base is dwindling rapidly and they cannot fool all their supporters all the time. A bigger surprise awaits them in 2025. Guyanese are cognisant who the real leaders are and definitely they are not in the Coalition. It is time that the PNC and the AFC publicly accept and apologise for the wrongs which they have perpetrated on this nation and at the same time support the removal of the infamous trio at GECOM to sanitise that entity. Moreover, elections rigging should now be a treasonable act. It’s time for a complete metamorphosis.
Yours sincerely,
H. Yusuf