PPP/C will leave no stone unturned to build free, equitable, globally-competitive society

– as Party celebrates 2nd anniversary of being elected to office

It has been two years since the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections which, despite being marred by a political deadlock for five months, saw the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) winning the confidence of the electorate and according to the Party, it will continue to work assiduously to ensure its election promises are fulfilled.
“Since taking up its mandate, the PPP/C has been working tirelessly to incrementally fulfil its manifesto promises in the execution of a transformational agenda that will build a multi-dimensional economy and elevate the country onto a rapid development path and create opportunities for the empowerment of all Guyanese,” the Party said in a statement on Wednesday to mark the second anniversary of its re-election to office.
According to the Party, it embraces the Government’s transformational agenda, its efforts to diversify the economy and reinvigorate the health, education, and private sectors and support the vulnerable. These initiatives, it noted, are in keeping with its 2020 campaign slogan of “One Country, One People, One Future” and will undoubtedly lead to the realisation of President Dr Irfaan Ali’s vision of an economically and socially empowered “One Guyana”.
“Guyanese are further assured on this anniversary that the Government and the party will leave no stone unturned in building a free, equitable, prosperous, socially-just, and globally-competitive society,” the missive detailed.
The statement also reassured citizens of the PPP/C Government’s unwavering commitment to upholding the sanctity of the Guyanese Constitution and the enshrined provisions of democratic processes for governance and rule of law.
It reminded of the attempt by the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) to rig the March 2, 2020 elections. The Party said it was through the intense struggle by its members and other forces – including other political parties; Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs); international and regional observers with the support of the international community – that democracy prevailed.
Now two years since it was returned to office through a “free and fair democratic process”, the PPP/C expressed its gratitude for the overwhelming expression of confidence from the Guyanese electorate.
“The Party takes this opportunity on the second anniversary of the March 2nd elections to thank those who have given us the mandate to govern through their votes, our loyal members and supporters at home and abroad, and those who fought alongside us during the five-month struggle to uphold democracy. We also thank those who are working now tirelessly in the Government and elsewhere in our country to strengthen democracy and support our transformational agenda,” it added.
Following the close of polls on March 2, 2020, the original counting of the ballots cast had proceeded smoothly and had been completed in nine regions with the PPP/C in a commanding lead.
However, the tabulation of Statements of Poll (SoPs) was interrupted in District Four (Demerara-Mahaica, which is the country’s largest voting district) after then Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo switched from the legal procedure – which ensures transparency – whereby each SoP had to be exhibited to the stakeholders present to enable comparison to their copies. However, Mingo diverted to a procedure where the purported numbers from the SoPs were incorporated into a consolidated spreadsheet. This led to immediate calls for transparency from both local and international observers.
After recourse to the High Court, all the parties except the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition protested the sleight of hand that facilitated inflation of the votes for that party.
Following a High Court’s decision, Mingo was ordered to revert to the prescribed procedure, but he repeated his subterfuge in another guise and submitted totals that varied substantially from those of other parties and had the APNU/AFC ahead rather than the PPP/C.
The Chairwoman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Retired Justice Claudette Singh agreed to a recount of all the votes, which had been proposed by then caretaker President David Granger and agreed to by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo after an intervention by several Caricom leaders.
Both leaders had recommitted to accepting the results of the recount, which had uncovered blatant attempts by some senior GECOM officials to inflate votes in favour of the coalition regime during the initial count.
Nevertheless, final figures from the recount showed that the PPP/C won the March 2 General Elections with 233,336 votes cast in its favour. The APNU/AFC secured 217,920 votes.
Since then, GECOM has fired its Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield; his deputy, Roxanne Myers, and Mingo – who are all currently before the courts facing electoral fraud charges. Some other officials within the Elections Commission’s Secretariat were also removed.