Dear Editor,
There have been more than 84 days since Guyanese voted in the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections and there is yet to be a free, fair and transparent outcome, as the evidence mounts of the systemic manipulation of votes by the Region Four Returning Officer, Claimont Mingo. With the recount unravelling Mingo’s blatant fraud, the APNU/AFC caretaker counting agent has resorted to a turtle pace counting and allegations of irregularities in the recount process made by the APNU/AFC Government has resulted in lengthy delays in the daily proceedings. For example, on multiple occasions, political party representatives have alleged that persons who had died prior to the March 2 election had been found to have cast a ballot.
The APNU/AFC raised spectre of voter fraud involving the identities of dead voters on March 2, 2020, is based on more fantasy than fact, Polling Stations across this country were presided over by GECOM officials and agents who came from the two prevailing political parties, there were all kinds of safeguards built into the checks and balances making this kind of scenario a virtual impossibility. In many communities of this country, there are cases of persons with the same name, and the same birth dates which has led to inaccurate reports that “dead” people are voting, apparently it is the APNU/AFC caretaker Government and cabals that believe that voting from the grave was the one element that rigged the elections and recounts. APNU/AFC agents need to know that the allegations are all ridiculous because fraud by individual voters is a singularly foolish and ineffective way to attempt to win an election, however, GECOM’s new directive is only the serial numbers that are ticked off on the Official List of Electors (OLE) are to be recorded in the observation log, this must send a message to the APNU/AFC agents.
Currently, the recount is being executed at the workstations from 08:00 to 19:00h, but Guyana’s Elections Commission (GECOM) officials have expressed that ballot boxes should not be opened after 05:30 pm, saying the ballots would not be counted before 07:00 pm. It had been proposed that the entire process would be completed within 25 days but so far there has been an average of less than 80 ballot boxes recounted each day. At that rate, the Commission would need to activate the suggestion or proposal of the Opposition with the establishment of new stations, extending the cut off time to 06:00 pm for the ballot boxes to be extracted from the container, with only five days left from the proposed 25-day proposed timeline.
It will be a grave mistake for the David Granger caretaker Government to not allow, at minimum, TCC officials and The Carter Center mission to re-enter the country. In the eyes of the international community, Carter Center and TCC, as organisations of the United States, providing legitimacy to the electoral process in Guyana since 1992, this legitimacy is needed for the future of Guyana’s foreign relations once the recount ends and the COVID-19 pandemic subdues. For these reasons, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic will continue to request the return of the TCC and Carter Center to observe the recount process while supporting Caricom as the leader of the international observer missions. Not only is the Caricom team Guyana’s most legitimate international observer but it is also its most invested.
Caricom understands that democracy must prevail based on the will of the Guyanese people, and to a larger extent, for the sake of the communities. Even amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Guyana’s political situation, there is still optimism about the country’s potential. However, to ensure there is a democratic and transparent National Recount, Guyana’s best possible outcome require the United States’ and the international community’s continuous pressure on the David Granger-led APNU/AFC caretaker Government to increase the speed of the recount process.
Caricom, as a regional body, binds any elected Guyanese Government and its citizens to its Caribbean neighbours based on shared histories, values, and culture. While other international observers will have to leave Guyana once a decision is reached, Caricom Heads of Governments will remain observant as they are directly impacted by the actions of Guyana’s future President and Administration. GECOM must declare these results based on the recount. The United States and the international community have warned that Guyana could be isolated and even sanctioned if a President is sworn in on the flawed results, resulting in an uneasy standoff between the international community and the APNU/AFC.
Sincerely,
David Adams
