For five months following the March 2020 General and Regional Elections, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change senior officials and supporters robustly unleashed attacks on the international community, diplomats resident in Guyana, and everyone else who spoke out against the undemocratic road upon which they had embarked. The political situation that was created wholly by the APNU/AFC, who were in self-denial over their defeat, led to the humiliation of the country at an international level.
Today, the likely Leader of the Opposition, Joseph Harmon, now writes the heads of states of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, United Nations, Commonwealth, Caribbean Community (Caricom), Organisation of American States (OAS) among numerous international organisations, on Guyana’s elections.
It is almost absurd that the very APNU will now seek to ask these nations and organisations to support what Harmon is now describing as the “restoration of democratic values in Guyana”.
Lest we forget, the world watched and heard in disgust the continued pushing of a false narrative by the APNU/AFC that the March 2 polls were rigged in favour of the People’s Progressive Party. This continual stream of allegations of electoral fraud is contrary to the position taken by the then President, David Granger, all the international and local organisations, along with the Guyana Elections Commission itself: that the elections were “free, fair, and orderly”. It was Harmon himself who, earlier in June, launched an attack on Chair of Caricom, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, after the St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister made it clear that Caricom would not tolerate the stealing of an election, nor would the regional bloc allow the results from the national recount process to be set aside. As this newspaper had previously said, everyone – whether it be the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, European Union, Commonwealth, Organisation of American States, or everyone else – has had an attack launched on them for ‘interference’ in Guyana, all because these nations have called for a democratically elected Government to be installed in Guyana. The APNU/AFC even threatened to revoke the accreditation of foreign organisations observing the elections. A perverse attack was even launched on the notable sons of the region, former Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur and former Jamaica Prime Minister Bruce Golding. Like the others, they, too, called out APNU/AFC and certain senior officials of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) on their malfeasance.
The collusion between APNU/AFC and Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo to thwart the will of the Guyanese people came to the fore after the recount. This was settled by the recount, which was valid and credible, based on Caricom’s assessment.
Instead of focusing energies on what would inevitably be a colossal waste of time to attempt to get international support for this new campaign, Harmon and that party should spend that same vigour to reconnect with their support base, whom they fooled and manoeuvred into believing that they were in some way shortchanged at the March 2, 2020 polls.
That party’s credibility is at a crossroads, and has decreased significantly, with its support base hurting as their trust was betrayed by their leadership, which lied to them.
APNU/AFC should now go to Parliament and seize the opportunity to redeem itself by being a respected Opposition party.
