Re-tabulation must be independently verified by RO

Guyana now seems to be overwhelmed with chaos and confusion as a result of blatant attempts by various elements within the society to perpetuate electoral fraud and derail the democratic processes of the country. This is all happening at a time when the world’s latest emerging oil giant has started oil production and is about to take advantage of all the opportunities expected to come its way.
At the moment, the tension is rising in the capital city and communities across the country. Much of this is a result of the recklessness and irresponsibility on the part of the David Granger-led A Partnership for Unity/ Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) Coalition, and certain elements within the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).
The APNU/AFC supporters are now convinced that they have won the elections as they were told so by their leaders. The blatant refusal by GECOM to follow the legal and statutory requirements as it relates to the counting, tabulation and declaration of results has worsened the situation and has created a national crisis which would not be extremely difficult to contain.
Currently, the APNU/AFC supporters are creating havoc and driving fear into residents in some areas. There are reports that they launched attacks on persons perceived to be PPP supporters yesterday at Bush Lot, Berbice. They were riled up by their leaders who sought to convince them that the APNU/AFC have won the elections and “will serve another five years” where they will benefit from “the good life”. They are also being entertained at ‘victory parties’ where they are feted and thanked for “returning the coalition to office”.
In spite of pleadings from the international community and foreign observers, GECOM went ahead and declared the unverified results of Region 4, after a series of delaying tactics by the Chief Elections Officer and the Returning Officer and others within the organisation. They even breached a court order preventing them from declaring the results until they (results) are verified. It must be noted also that the law requires that the process be carried out in the presence of party agents and observers; this did not happen.
It must be noted that GECOM’s actions are occurring under the watch of its Chairperson who had given the nation all assurances that holding free, fair and credible elections is her priority and she would not sell her integrity “for all of Guyana’s oil”. It is not clear as to the reason for her inaction during the recent shameless events at GECOM’s Command Centre. What is clear, however, is that there is credible evidence to suggest that were serious attempts by the APNU/AFC, acting in collusion with persons inside GECOM, to subvert the will of the people by derailing the tabulation process of the 2020 elections results.
The western countries, through their Ambassadors here, have registered outrage over the coalition’s attempts to hijack the elections and have restated their call to ensure statutory procedures are followed to derive at a credible election result. They have stated clearly that there is no other way for this to happen other than to return to the verification of the Region 4 results. GECOM cannot proceed to declare national results if the required legal procedures are not followed. Until this occurs, the result of the elections would always be regarded as tainted and any government taking its mandate from this illegal process will be regarded as such.
There is still time for GECOM to do what is required under the law and possibly restore its credibility. We support Caricom Mission’s proposal that the re-tabulation of the SOPs must be done independently by Region Four Returning Officer (RO). This would satisfy all stakeholders as it would ensure that there is a credible elections result, which, in turn, would see the country returning to some level of normalcy.
The recent actions by APNU/AFC and elements within GECOM could only be viewed as a blatant and deliberate attempt to destroy the democratic gains made over the last two decades or so. Political parties, civil society, international and regional governments must continue to pressure GECOM, APNU/AFC and all others involved in this process to abide by the country’s laws. The will of the people must be respected or Guyana would face the risk of descending into chaos.