CARICOM Chair confident in Guyanese electorate

Following meetings with various stakeholders, Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley has expressed confidence in the Guyanese electorate ahead of the March 2,2020 General and Regional Elections.

“We have every confidence in the Guyanese people that they will resolve their determinations and decisions in a way that will inure to the benefit of the people of this country. I think everyone knows that a peaceful election is in the interest of everyone,” she told reporters at a press conference held at the CARICOM Secretariat on Monday.

Mottley noted that CARICOM will have a team, as will many others, present on the ground during that elections.

“I think both sides are comfortable. There are some concerns, but they are going to work themselves out. We will keep a watchful eye,” she added.

Following a successful No Confidence motion on December 21, 2018 both sides of the political divide entered a protracted legal battle which ended on June 18, 2019 with a ruling by the Caribbean Court of

Justice (CCJ) which found that the motion had been properly passed.

Though Article 106 (7) states that elections shall be called within three months of a successful no confidence vote it was not until September 29 that President David Granger identified March 2, 2020 as the date for elections.

The delay has ostensibly been to allow the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to prepare and approve an Official List of Electors (OLE) following the April 30, 2019 expiration of the last list.

An OLE was not approved and published until five days ago on February 1, 2020 following a prolonged and contentious process.

Throughout the nine months when the commission worked to prepared the list, the opposition People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) levelled accusations against members of the secretariat and wrote copious letters to foreign representative calling for intervention including “technical assistance” to supervise the operation of the elections management body.

Additionally the Opposition has officially complained to the Commission and the international community about calls by various leaders of the APNU+AFC on the campaign trail for their supporters to congregate at polling places after closing on March 2nd and “protect their ballot”.