DEMOCRACY in Guyana is alive and kicking. From all indications, Nomination Day went smoothly and the mood appeared good.

The PPP/C took centre stage with party members and supporters appearing confident of their chances of winning. It is now for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to put in place the necessary mechanisms to ensure that the elections are conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner.

Nomination Day was characterised by a significant number of new and fresh faces which augur well for democracy, especially at the grassroots level. There are also cases of candidates changing political allegiances, which is not unusual in any functioning democracy.

The right to belong to a party of one’s choice is a fundamental democratic right and it is good to know that there are people who are not constrained by past political allegiances, and who are prepared to do what, in their opinion, is politically correct to do.

This, in essence, is what democracy is all about. It is about providing eligible voters with the opportunity to choose from among the political parties, organisations or candidates vying for political office, who can best be trusted to administer the affairs of the communities on their behalf.

There was a time when that right to vote was taken away by the PNC regime. This was true for both national and Local Government Elections.

Those “elected” to serve at the various levels of governance were in effect “foisted” on to the people against their will. For nearly three decades Guyanese were forced to endure undemocratic and dictatorial rule.

Thankfully, all of that has changed and we now live in a democracy, even though our democracy still remains fragile as the experience of the March 2020 national and regional elections demonstrated, when attempts were made by the then APNU+AFC coalition to subvert the will of the electorate.

The upcoming Local Government Elections provide yet another opportunity for voters to have their say on which individuals or groups should be at the helm of the governance process.

And even though the contest will be closely watched in all of the local government areas, the main focus will be in the City of Georgetown, which had always been under the political control of the PNC/R, but has now seen some significant inroads by the ruling PPP/C alliance with former Mayor of Georgetown Patricia Chase-Greene and a former PNCR Councillor Trichia Richards now switching sides in favour of the PPP/C.

This move has been warmly embraced both by President, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and Vice-president, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo. Commenting on this development, President Ali said: “We welcome you with open arms and with love, and you are part of a group that is committed to national development. You are part of a movement that is committed to the upliftment of every single Guyanese; we can send an even stronger message that this is a national party representing every single stratum of the Guyanese society.”

And in a similar vein, Dr Jagdeo, who is also General-Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party, had this to say: “For a very, very long time, they [PNC/R] characterised the PPP/C as a racist party, but a few weeks ago, as I said, we’re the only multi-racial party in this country. And once again, they have demonstrated this; and those that are new to us, you will see that once you become part of this family, we warmly embrace our family, not based on their race or their religion or their ideology, but because they are part of our collective which wants to move the country forward.”

The PPP/C is the only political organisation that has fielded candidates in all of the contested areas. With 20,000 candidates and 26,000 backers, the writing is seemingly on the wall. Party supporters decked in party colours dominated the political spaces, significantly in Georgetown and Linden, which were once considered PNC strongholds.

The PNC, for its part, seems content to settle for what it considered “politically safe” areas. In the final analysis, it is the voters who will have the final say, but from the way things look, the PNC Leader has every right to exercise caution.