Commonwealth Secretary General in Guyana with high-level team

…President Ali holds bilateral talks

Following up on previous meetings at the United Nations COP26 last year, President Dr Irfaan Ali and senior members of his Cabinet on Monday met with a team from the Commonwealth Secretariat led by its Secretary General, Rt Hon Patricia Scotland, QC, for bilateral talks.
The meeting, which was held at the Office of the President, also had in attendance Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips; Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh; Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Minister Gail Teixeira, Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister Hugh Todd, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill and Tourism, Industry and Commerce Minister Oneidge Walrond.
The Commonwealth delegation, meanwhile, featured Director and Head of the SG’s Office, Deborah Jamieson; Senior Director, Governance and Peace Directorate, Professor Luis Franceschi; Assistant Research Officer of the SG’s Office, Francis Wanjiku and Assistant Research Officer of the Governance and Peace Directorate, Fayola Fraser.
Prior to Monday’s meeting, President Ali had met the Secretary General in Glasgow, Scotland, at the United Nations Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP) 26 in November of last year.
The Commonwealth of Nations, generally known simply as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 54 member states including Guyana, almost all of which are former territories of the British Empire.
The Commonwealth itself was very vocal during Guyana’s months-long election controversy back in 2020, when the former A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government refused to relinquish power without a fight despite losing the elections.
The Commonwealth was among the international organisations who would bring pressure to bear on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to use the figures emanating from the National Recount to make a final declaration of the March 2 General and Regional Elections.
In fact, Baroness Scotland herself issued the call for all stakeholders and political actors to accept the lawful results, also endorsing the July 9 missive from then Chairman of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, who had called on all stakeholders to respect the ruling of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), Guyana’s final court of appeal.
“I urge all political actors and stakeholders in Guyana to accept and respect the results of the National Recount and ensure that their words and actions promote an environment of peace, harmony and social cohesion among all Guyanese,” she had said in a statement.

Baroness Scotland had referred to Guyana as a much-loved and valued member of the Commonwealth. As such, on behalf of the entire Commonwealth family, she strongly encouraged the Elections Commission to follow the directions given by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) and decisively conclude the March 2, 2020 elections based on the results of the National Recount.
Moreover, the Commonwealth SG had pointed out that Guyana’s destiny as a great nation rests on the shoulders of those men and women who are duty-bound to make the right decision. This, she asserted, includes respecting the will of the people and the rule of law, and being ready to place the country before personal ambitions.
“The will of the people as expressed in the 2 March 2020 General and Regional Elections must be respected for democracy to prevail in Guyana. The Commonwealth calls all leaders to be faithful to the common good, so that Guyana’s future may truly be forged today,” Baroness Scotland had stated.