PPP commends GECOM Chair for upholding Constitution

…anxiously awaiting swearing-in of Irfaan Ali as 9th President

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has lauded the Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), retired Justice Claudette Singh, for upholding the Constitution in her recent landmark decision to use the results from the National Recount for a final declaration of the March 2 General and Regional Elections.

On Tuesday, the GECOM Chair directed Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield to prepare a final report using the recount results, in keeping with Section 96 of the Representation of the People Act Chapter 1:03; thereby paving the way for the official declaration of the Election’s Results and the subsequent swearing in of PPP/C’s Dr Irfaan Ali as the ninth Executive President of Guyana.
The 34-day National Recount confirmed a landslide victory for the PPP/C, which secured 15,416 votes more than its main political rival, A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Coalition.
According to the PPP/C in a statement, Tuesday’s decision is in line with its earlier position that GECOM is not a court of law, therefore it has no jurisdiction to hear allegations of irregularities. In any case, the party noted, these claims have been totally discredited by the Caribbean Community (Caricom) team of scrutineers, which also reiterated that aggrieved parties can seek redress by way of an election petition to the court.

“The Commission agreed that GECOM has no jurisdiction to annul an election, since no such power was conferred on it under Article 162 (1) (b) of the Constitution. The PPP wishes to commend the GECOM Chair, retired Justice Claudette Singh, for standing on the side of the rule of law and upholding the Constitution of Guyana,” the missive detailed.
The Party also congratulated President-elect Irfaan Ali, and noted that it “anxiously awaits” his swearing in as the ninth Executive President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana.
“The move towards a speedy transition to a democratically elected government will allow our nation to focus on the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment, and issues related to the economy, among others,” the PPP/C asserted.

Ready
Over the past week, Ali, during a local radio programme named ‘Room 592’, indicated that he was ready to take the reins of office and lead Guyana.
“I’m not nervous…I’m ready! Our team is ready! And we’re ready to move forward with a broadened approach, a widened approach, a collective approach in building this country,” he posited.

Vindicated in its struggles
Meanwhile, PPP/C General Secretary Bharrat Jagdeo on Tuesday evening told party supporters that while the party has been vindicated in its struggles, they need to stay claim and not disparage supporters from the other side.

“We are happy for ourselves, but we don’t need to be in their faces and so on… Right now I know people are happy, and there’s cause for jubilation, but let’s be measured in our celebrations. We have a country to transform; we have a lot of work to do. Too many people are suffering for too long because of these guys hanging on to power. They don’t care about our country, they’re just hanging on for their own personal benefits,” Jagdeo contended.
According to the Opposition Leader, Guyanese should not be fooled by Coalition’s claims of caring for the people. “They didn’t care while in office, and they don’t care now. They just want to use people to keep them in office… [The PPP/C] has a history of working for all the people of Guyana – all Guyana – and we will continue to do so. People of all races, all religion, all of our people will have a fair share in the new government,” he noted.
Jagdeo went on to assure persons in the public sector that they do not have to be worried about their jobs, as he reiterated his party’s position of not embarking on a witch-hunting expedition. However, he pointed out that there are a few persons at the top level who will have to face the consequences of their actions.
While the GECOM Chair has directed the CEO to compile his report for the declaration, the timeline when this is expected to be done has not been made public.
In total, from the recount exercise, the PPP/C garnered 233,336 votes, while the APNU/AFC secured 217,920 votes in the General Elections. In the Regional Elections, the PPP/C also won with 233,661 votes, while APNU/AFC secured 217,055 votes.
Using the Hare formula, it means the PPP/C secured 33 out of 65 seats in the National Assembly, and the APNU/AFC secured 31. The remaining one seat has been obtained by the joiner party consisting of three of the new parties – A New and United Guyana (ANUG), Liberty and Justice Party (LJP), and The New Movement (TNM).
For the new parties, the numbers in the General Elections are as follows: A New and United Guyana – 2,313; Change Guyana – 1,953; Liberty and Justice Party – 2,657; People’s Republic Party – 889; The Citizen’s Initiative – 680; The New Movement – 244; and the United Republican Party – 360.
Meanwhile in the Regional Elections, Change Guyana secured 2,607; Fed-Up Party 153; Liberty and Justice Party 2,935; Organisation for the Victory of the People 448; People’s Republic Party 927; and the United Republican Party 1,369.