Dear Editor,
THE just-concluded meeting held between the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and the representatives of the APNU+AFC leave many questions and suspicion about the real motive and agenda of the latter. The APNU+AFC’s urgings to GECOM against holding elections without major reforms is merely one aspect of their hidden political agenda that must not be overlooked.
In respect to the meeting held, reliable sources reported that the APNU+AFC representatives had nothing substantial to offer, or rather, nothing new came out from the meeting. It is crystal clear that the old PNC/R line to procrastinate and avoid LGEs is what the PNC/R has up its sleeves. The PNC/R issue with the deceased names on the list is noted. However, there is a legal system in place for removals. As regards the ‘migrants’, the court has ruled concerning this matter.
The clandestine strategy is nothing but the old trick of under-cutting Community Development by advocating for the delay of Local Government Elections (LGEs) and then complaining about it on the political platform during the campaign period. The PNC/R as the controlling party in the Coalition is fully aware of the need for adequate and renewed leadership at the municipal, neighbourhood democratic, and village council levels; but is willing to sacrifice this for fear of facing the electorate.
They are also cognisant of the necessity for delivery of services to citizens at these levels, and that the mechanism of LGEs will deliver new energetic leaders to take advantage of the national development push at these levels, to appease the livelihood of our citizenry. Naturally, the APNU+AFC wants our citizens to start complaining and this, the PPP/C must not allow by agreeing to any further delays in GECOM’s holding of the LGEs.
All of the monster tears about the bloated list go against acceptable controls that are in place for the conduct of elections of E-day, to prevent egregious voting practices. The complainants are forgetting that they have representative polling agents in each polling station who are there to verify the authenticity of each voter and to count and sign the ‘statements of poll’.
APNU+AFC cannot deny that on the evening of March 3, 2020, their representatives, including then-President Granger, pronounce and announced that the 2020 Elections were free and fair. Our nation will recall that Election Day on March 3, 2020 was a peaceful day and all local and international observers also confirmed that Election Day activities were without hiccups, peaceful and successful.
The March 2020 Elections fiasco started when the APNU+AFC riggers, along with the GECOM riggers, introduced the (broadsheet and the dirty bedsheet) in the verification process in Region Four. The blatant attempt to rig the elections was prevented by the strong leadership of the PPP/C and the unflinching support of the ‘Guardians of Democracy’, along with the significant support from the ABC and E countries, along with the international observers and CARICOM. That total togetherness must never be forgotten. It was only when they could not get through with the rigging efforts, complaints about the list intensified.
The call for an internal review of all that took place before, during, and after the 2020 Elections is most welcome. However, the APNU+AFC must bring their statements of poll for the nation to see. Further, GECOM must examine the backup storage for computerised data, to recover all the necessary information that was wiped out and taken out of its computers. For a proper and normal assessment, a thorough review of all that took place in preparation and for conducting the 2020 Elections is important and necessary. Why, therefore, is the APNU+AFC not joining the call for those who are responsible for the removal of the SOPs and all other information to be charged and placed before the courts.
APNU+AFC calls on GECOM not to hold LGEs before major reforms are wicked and cowardly. As the government in 2016 and 2018, they approved and supported, and held LGEs while largely being able to influence critical changes that were intended to off-balance contesting political parties. Before these changes were revealed, neither GECOM nor the APNU+AFC had the simple courtesy to hold discussions with the PPP/C or any other political party when they introduced New NDCs along with new towns and made changes to several boundaries in their gerrymandering efforts to win votes or take control of some NDCs based on the concentration of party support.
The PPP/C Government must, therefore, involve GECOM in discussions to carefully re-look at some of the New NDCs that the APNU introduced that cannot function on their own. Some of them are not collecting a single cent from rates and taxes. Regularisation of local government areas must be meaningful and related to the delivery of service to the people dwelling within.
The PPP/C Government must be applauded for the inclusive approach they adopted before proposing amendments to the Representation of the People Act (RoPA), in effort to hold elections officials accountable. The procedure included invited submissions from all political parties and valuable stakeholders. The PNC/R and small and defunct ‘AFC’ failed to make any proposals to the government on the proposed amendments. This nation must not be held at ransom while the PNC/R is having its internal battles for mere survival. GECOM must be cautious about the looseness or lack of serious agenda intended by the PNC and put all systems in place to hold LGEs as early as possible.
Yours sincerely,
Neil Kumar