Working for free and fair elections

Feb 18, 2015 Editorial

The political parties must by now have recognized the irrationality of criticising the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM). Not that GECOM is beyond reproach. But rather that GECOM itself is comprised of representatives of the parties, with the Chairman appointed by the involvement of all the parliamentary parties.
When therefore there are reservations expressed about GECOM, those condemning need to be reminded that they have representatives sitting in the highest council of that body.
It is therefore important that GECOM, as it has +one, continues to address in a pellucid manner, the many concerns that are being expressed about its level of preparedness, as any silence would be construed as an unwillingness to accept the responsibility for all aspects of the conduct of the elections, from registration to the declaration of the winners.
Already a great deal of suspicion has been cast on the preparations for the elections, led primarily by the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic, which is clearly dissatisfied with GECOM’s current status in relation to a number of issues.
The party has repeatedly called for a credible as well as “clean and transparent” list of electors, “devoid of discrepancies”, to be produced at the end of the upcoming claims and objections period. Over the past few months there has been intense scrutiny of the list in terms of verification of new registrants, ineligible persons, especially underage persons (as well as the deceased) and transparent recruitment of polling day staff
This persistent suspicion, though it may be acceptably argued is a right of those contesting the elections, is not particularly healthy for the electoral process, since as experience has shown, it can become the pretext for casting doubt on the fairness of the elections, with implications for peace and stability.
It is therefore important that the Guyana Elections Commission has a meeting of minds as to what needs to be done to enhance public confidence in this most fundamental of processes for democracy. We urge the commissioners to seriously take note of the many apprehensions that have been expressed about the work of GECOM, and to show with a united voice and concerted action that they are prepared to frontally deal with these concerns in the relatively limited time remaining, so as to purchase greater public confidence in the electoral process. We are confident that the commissioners can set an example of working together that would be inspiring for the rest of the country.
The holding of elections in Guyana requires special care and attention. The levels of disenfranchisement and hiccups that would be tolerated in other countries cannot be entertained here, because ethnic and political divisions continuously act to cast shadows of mistrust over the electoral process. Because of this, GECOM needs to virtually guarantee a flawless election: one in which no one lawfully entitled to vote is disenfranchised, one in which polling stations operate without hiccups, and an election in which rules are followed to the letter.
The slightest slippage can raise a maelstrom of criticism within society and we all know how this can be exploited to cast doubts on the fairness of the process.
The hosting of elections in Guyana also presents a huge financial burden and despite a significant outlay from the treasury, requires funding from foreign donor agencies and governments.
Significant support will undoubtedly be received from these sources which have a vested interest in ensuring that elections are free and fair. The international stakeholders therefore also need to get on board so as to move the process of confidence-building forward, and more importantly, to ensure that preparations for elections are on track.
Elections are less than three months away, and despite the many concerns that have been expressed, we believe that it is within the competence of GECOM to place itself in a position to run-off a polling process that would be free and fair, and free from suspicions and hiccups.
We hope that all those who have a responsibility to discharge this mandate would ensure that they do not fail in meeting the high expectations of Guyana and the international community.

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