Pres Ali hails standard set by UK elections in gracious handover of power

– as Guyana remains scarred by APNU/AFC’s attempt to steal the 2020 elections

President Dr Irfaan Ali has expressed optimism about working along with the new United Kingdom Labour Government, officially extending congratulations to new Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and lauding the peaceful, efficient transition of power.
The UK held its national elections on July 4 and by July 5, labour leader Starmer had officially taken over as the new Prime Minister. During Friday night’s celebrations of King Charles III’s birthday, President Ali lauded this peaceful and efficient transition, particularly noteworthy since over millions of votes had to be counted.
“The United Kingdom has just concluded its elections. And I take this opportunity to extend my congratulations to the new Prime Minister. Guyanese across the world are indeed immensely proud of the appointment of the Right Honourable David Lammy, as UK’s Foreign Secretary. We collectively wish the Prime Minister, and him, every success during their tenure.

“A point to note about the UK elections is the efficiency, speed, and decorum, through which the results were tabulated, announced, and received. Indeed, the gracefulness and graciousness through which candidates passed the mantle of leadership is something remarkable and commendable. And we applaud you,” the Head of State said.
In addition to coming as this country prepares for General and Regional Elections next year, President Ali’s comments also come in light of Guyana’s history – as recent as 2020 – when the then A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government refused to hand over power after being defeated at the polls in a five-month period which has left a scar on Guyana’s political landscape.
At the 2020 elections, there were blatant attempts to rig the results in favour of the then-incumbent APNU/AFC regime. These efforts saw Guyana falling into a five-month political deadlock that was eventually resolved with steadfast pressure from local stakeholders and the international community.
This resulted in the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) winning the presidency with a commanding 233,336 votes, a remarkable lead of 15,416 over its political rival, the APNU/AFC. It also resulted in several senior Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) officials being placed before the courts. They include former Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield and his then Deputy CEO, Roxanne Myers.
In addition to Lowenfield and Myers, the other defendants in the election fraud cases are former Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo, former People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Chairperson Volda Lawrence; PNCR activist Carol Smith-Joseph, and GECOM employees Sheffern February, Enrique Livan, Denise Babb-Cummings, and Michelle Miller.
They are accused of several offences, including misconduct while holding public office, presenting falsified documentation, and planning to manipulate Guyana’s voters by presenting an inaccurate vote total.
Back in May, Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George, SC, dismissed a challenge filed by Lowenfield and Myers regarding the electoral fraud cases filed against them in a magistrate’s court over the 2020 General and Regional Elections.
The former GECOM officials had claimed in their challenge that Section 140 (2) of the Representation of the People Act breached their right to a fair trial, as guaranteed by Article 144, and their right to equality before the law, as guaranteed by Article 149 (D) of the Constitution.
Following the dismissal of the case, the Attorney General’s chambers said the court found that Lowenfield and Myers were on a fishing expedition and “cast their net too wide”. It added that the court found no evidence that Lowenfield and Myers’ constitutional rights were likely to be infringed.
“The court also found that the public interest in ensuring that GECOM’s deliberations remain confidential overrides whatever constitutional rights Lowenfield and Myers enjoy. Finally, the court ruled that there was no ground established that shows that Section 140 (2) of the Representation of the People Act breached any provisions of the Constitution,” the statement from the AG chambers detailed.