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PPP/C will not contest LGE with Surujbally as GECOM Chairman – Rohee
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) yesterday made no bones about its intention to avoid
Chairman of GECOM Dr. Steve Surujbally
contesting the long-awaited Local Government Elections (LGE), should Dr. Steve Surujbally still be the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).
This was expressed at the PPP/C weekly press conference at Freedom House. When asked whether the PPP/C would participate in LGE under the Surujbally’s stewardship at GECOM, General Secretary of the PPP/C, Clement Rohee, declared, “Not with Surujbally. We have already begun calling for Surujbally’s resignation. We want Dr. Surujbally’s resignation almost immediately.”
Since the PPP/C lost the May 11 General and Regional elections, they have indeed issued repeated calls for the resignation of the GECOM Chairman, despite the fact that GECOM is composed of six Commissioners- three from A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) and three from the PPP/C.
These calls have even taken the form of protests that saw former President Donald Ramotar, as well as members from his past Cabinet, picketing in front of GECOM’s Headquarters on High Street, Kingston, alleging that the electoral body conspired with the current APNU+AFC administration in order to rig the elections. The party offered the body’s refusal to do a national recount, as well as several disputed Statements of Poll, as evidence of the alleged ‘collusion’.
Local Government Elections were last held in Guyana in 1994, despite stipulations stating that it is supposed to be held every four years. Back in 2011, during the lead up to General and Regional elections, the then People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) had promised to have the LGE held by 2012. Following the election results that saw the PPP/C reduced to a minority government, however, the party did not keep its word.
At the time, then Leader of the Opposition, David Granger, had pledged to hold LGE when he got into office. That became a reality on May 11, with the APNU+AFC victory. In his address to the 11th Parliament, incidentally boycotted by the PPP/C, President Granger promised the return of several Bills to the table, including the Local Government (amendment) Bill.
Granger also laid out several social and economic development policies geared at galvanizing local democracy through LGE.
The ABC countries (United States of America, Britain and Canada) have also issued repeated calls to the past PPP/C administration to pave the way for LGE to be held, which for the most part fell on deaf ears but have expressed optimism that under the Granger administration it can happen as early as 2016.
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