President tells GECOM to prepare for elections

Feb 27, 2019 News

President David Granger has instructed the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission, (GECOM) Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson, to commence preparations for the General and Regional Elections.
In his letter to GECOM, the President promised to initiate measures to provide the requested funds and to seek the approval of the National Assembly to ensure that an agreement can be reached, given both the Constitutional requirements and GECOM’s capability.
“I have noted your statement to the effect that the Commission does not have the capability to deliver credible General and Regional Elections within the three month time frame commencing 2018-12-21 and the additional funds appropriated by the National Assembly need to be provided,” the President said in a letter to GECOM chairman.

President David Granger

The President noted further that the government is committed to doing everything possible to ensure that the Commission is provided with the financial resources and have sufficient time to conduct credible elections”.
Granger’s response comes days after GECOM had informed him that the organization could not meet the three-month time frame for General and Regional Elections triggered by the successful no-confidence motion brought by the PPP in the National Assembly on December 21, last, and which is therefore Constitutionally due in March.
The GECOM had previously announced that it would not be ready for General and Regional Elections anytime soon. The Commission had voted in favour of having a fresh house-to-house registration as part of GECOM’s “normal work programme.”
Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, had stated that if there is to be house-to-house registration, General and Regional Elections cannot be held before February next year.
The GECOM official had noted that “We are not ignoring the no confidence motion. In relation to the motion, we said that we cannot do it in the stipulated time. There are routine things that GECOM is doing which will help in the preparation for elections, but they are not things that are voted for under an election programme.”

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