The Working People’s Alliance (WPA) said on Tuesday that it is shocked by recent revelations that the Chair of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Claudette Singh, acted unilaterally in advising President Irfaan Ali on the suitability of September 1 as the date for Guyana’s upcoming general and regional elections.
“If one of the PPP-nominated commissioners is to be believed, it appears that even the government-aligned commissioners were not formally consulted,” said the WPA.
In effect, the party said the chair appears to have been given a date by the president and the CEO subsequently adjusted GECOM’s previously publicized work-plan to accommodate the president’s preference.
The WPA was keen to note that the chairperson has a duty to refute this perception. Until she does so, WPA said said it is forced to conclude that she has tacitly handed over the election process to the president and the PPP.
“While it is the president’s authority to set the election date, it is GECOM’s right to determine when that body is ready to deliver proper elections. From all that we have learned today, that practice was torpedoed by the chairperson and the president either separately or together. If our assessment is correct, then those two officials have dealt another severe blow to the credibility of an already suspect election,” the WPA said.
Overall, the party said it sees this as nothing short of political recklessness, adding that confidence in GECOM’s ability to deliver impartial and credible elections is already at an all-time low.
Furthermore, the WPA said that GECOM, since the 2020 election, has rejected all the opposition’s suggestions for reform of the process, most of which were suggested by international and regional observers. It also called on the international community and CARICOM to use their influence to stop the political carnage. “These forces owe it to the Guyanese people, given their central role in the developments surrounding the last election. Their inaction in the face of a clear and present danger is inexcusable. They must move beyond words,” the WPA said.
