-says more observer missions will be invited for upcoming election

ATTORNEY-GENERAL and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, has said that in the lead-up to the September 1 elections, more accredited observer missions will be invited to monitor the electoral process.

Nandlall made this known during a recent airing of his programme, ‘Issues in the News,’ during which he noted that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration welcomes election observers following an announcement that the Carter Center observer mission will return for this year’s elections.

It was then that he noted that it was the PPP/C that had fought for 28 years to have observer missions in Guyana, while others did not want observers present and blocked them.

Providing a brief history, Nandlall noted that it was only in 1992, after 28 years, that international observers were first introduced and they have been present for every subsequent electoral cycle.

“Every one of those international observers has certified all the elections held from 1992 to 2020 as free, fair and democratic,” he said.

To this end, he said that this government will invite as many of the reputable international observer missions as possible.

“We have nothing to hide. We want transparency and we know who the electoral miscreants are, and we know what their capabilities, tendencies and proclivities are,” Nandlall added.

He went on to note that the more observer teams, the safer the electoral process will be.
Just last week, the European Union formalised its support through the signing of an administrative arrangement for the deployment of a European Union Election Observation Mission (EUEOM).

Ambassador Rene van Nes signed the agreement on behalf of the EU, alongside Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Justice (ret’d) Claudette Singh, and Ambassador Elisabeth Harper, representing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

The agreement outlines the framework under which the EUEOM will operate, laying the legal and logistical groundwork for its presence in the lead-up to the elections scheduled for September 1, 2025.