Nothing done by APNU, AFC to regain trust of electorate – Dominic Gaskin

…says campaign “sweeteners” will not cut it for Opposition parties

Former Minister under the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, Dominic Gaskin, believes that the promises being made to the electorate by these two parties on the current elections campaign trail are futile since there were no attempts made by either APNU or AFC to regain the trust lost after the 2020 polls. Gaskin, who served as Minister of Business between 2015 to 2020 under the coalition regime was the first official from that camp to call out the blatant attempts to rig the March 2, 2020 election results.

Since then, he has not been involved in politics and is no longer attached to any political party – focusing over the past five years on his jewellery business. However, prior to his withdrawal from the political scene, Gaskin – the son-in-law of former President David Granger and a former Executive Member of the AFC – had urged the APNU+AFC to work on regaining the public’s trust leading up to the 2020 polls. But during an appearance on this week’s edition of the Starting Point podcast, Gaskin says the two former coalition partners, which are contesting the upcoming September 1 General and Regional Elections independently have done nothing to rebuild their credibility among Guyanese voters.
“I’ve seen nothing over the last five years from either the APNU or the AFC that says to me ‘Look, we’ve examined the situation. We’ve done some internal agonising and investigations and so, and here is our take on it.’ Their comfort zone seems to be just ignoring it and hoping it will go away… Ignoring what took place…in that five-month period, pretending it didn’t happen and worst yet, even questioning the legitimacy of the current Government. It doesn’t help the opposition to do that and it certainly does not regain the trust or the support that they lost,” Gaskin contended. Days after the March 2, 2020, polls, Gaskin had broken ranks with the coalition and spoke out against the rigging attempts – something which he continued to do during the tumultuous five-month period after the March 2 polls until the Granger Administration finally conceded defeat and the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) was sworn into office on August 2, 2020.
Several former high-ranking electoral officials along with politicians in the then Coalition administration are currently facing legal proceedings over their roles in attempting to alter the 2020 election results.

Sweeteners will not sway votes
Five years later, on the cusp of another General and Region Elections, the former coalition Minister says that nothing the APNU or AFC does or promises to the electorate would hold any political weight. “Promises will get you some votes but I’ve already commented on what I think the outcome of this election is going to be… I don’t see that outcome changing because of these promises. I think, yes, you can make last minute campaign promises…but by and large people will vote for you based on your performance over the last five years and not swayed by the sweeteners you handout in last few weeks of your campaign,” he posited.
Last October, Gaskin appeared on a television programme where he said the events during the last elections has caused the APNU+AFC two election losses – 2020 and 2025. In fact, he had predicted that the ruling PPP/C would return to office at the 2025 polls. Recalling his actions back in 2020 that was largely seen a blow to the coalition, Gaskin declared that it was the right thing to do especially since he fiercely believes in the democratic right and will of the people.
“[Losing] wasn’t something that we had to be ashamed of and it wasn’t something that was totally unexpected because our elections have always been close… The numbers that were presented for Region Four [Guyana’s largest voting district and the source of contention during the 2020 elections] were clearly the wrong numbers. They didn’t match with anything that I had seen beforehand or was published… The numbers were literally pulled from a hat just to make up the amount that would take us past over the 50 per cent mark, and that was obvious to anyone who was paying close attention to the numbers.”
“So, I can’t look at something like that and be a party to it or even want to benefit from it. That didn’t sit well with me. I feel very strong about elections and how we treat with the people’s will. It’s only once every five years that Guyanese get a chance to make a difference and to deny them an opportunity to make a difference – whether you agree with what the majority voted for or not – I think it’s wrong, fundamentally wrong and I think it would have been bad for Guyana,” he contended. According to Gaskin, he did not face any backlash over his political stance in 2020, noting that he has always maintained good relations with his former coalition colleagues.