Latest update February 10th, 2025 2:25 PM
Democratic Gains under threat – British Envoy
– blasts government over Local Government elections
By Latoya Giles
British High Commission to Guyana, Andrew Ayre said on Tuesday evening that while Guyana over the years has made significant progress, democratic gains are under “threat”. The High Commissioner made the remark while addressing guests at a party held to mark Queen Elizabeth 11 birthday.
High Commission to Guyana, Andrew Ayre and Prime Minister Sam Hinds cut the cake in celebration of the Queen’s birthday.
According to Ayre, the decision by government not to have Local Government Elections is a stain on “Guyana’s international standing”.
Ayre told the gathering, “Not only are the reasons given a clear breach of Guyana’s constitution, they are also a clear breach of the Commonwealth charter…and the UK again calls on Guyana’s Government to deliver now what it is supposed to do every three years and what was in the manifestos of all three parties ahead of the 2011 elections: Local Government Elections”.
Ayre opined that Guyana is at a “pivotal” moment in its history. Over the last year or so the pressure has been piling up for Guyana to hold Local Government Elections. Civil society groups, including three embassies, had issued in May a joint statement signaling a growing unhappiness over the current situation.
With regards to the Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill (AMLCFT), Ayre said that the likely blacklisting of Guyana by the Financial Action Task Force may reverse many of the hard-won gains.
He said that it could be avoidable, and might yet still be avoided. “But to do so needs immediate action to adopt and implement the numerous recommendations that FATF requires of us all, including carrying out investigations into complex financial crime,” Ayre noted.
He said that the High Commission, along with its United States and Canadian partners, has worked hard over the past 18 months to assist, including through offers of training and mentoring.
“I do not know why this work, which requires no new legislation, has not been done….the UK also calls upon the political parties to adopt, without further delay, the revised AML/CFT bill,” Ayre said.
He urged that political parties must know that the time for playing politics has been over months ago.
Despite the challenges, Ayre said that he remains optimistic about Guyana’s long term future and the UK’s role in it. This is a country of enormous potential with a talented, in some cases brilliant, population.
He said that the key to Guyana’s development is to provide the conditions required to retain this talent, rather than have it develop and enrich other people’s countries, including my own. “Guyana’s people are your greatest asset and the reason why I remain so fond of your country,” Ayre posited.
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