President still to consult Cabinet on election date

Sep 21, 2019 News

The country is waiting on President David Granger to name an election date. Up until the morning of Thursday last, the President’s excuse had been

PPP supporters protesting outside the Pegasus Hotel last Thursday.

that, in order to name an election date, he had to be advised of the readiness of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM). He had said that, though eager to announce a date, it would not be wise to put Guyana into what he described as the Abuja scenario, faced by Nigeria.
Earlier this year, the Elections Commission of Nigeria had informed the Government, just five hours before polls were set to open, that it was not ready to hold the election. The election had to be postponed.
In Guyana’s case, the President has now received information from the GECOM Chair that the Secretariat will be ready to hold elections by the end of February 2020.
Approached by members of the media outside a luncheon, where he was protested, at the Pegasus Hotel, the President acknowledged that he received a letter from the Chair, but that he had not yet made a decision. He had said that, later that day, he would consult with Cabinet on a date.
But during a press conference of the Alliance For Change (AFC) yesterday, Minister of Public Telecommunications, Cathy Hughes, said that the President hadn’t met with Cabinet. He had only met a few Ministers.
However, Cabinet is expected to meet on Tuesday. That means that the President isn’t likely to announce an election date at least for the next three days.
And during that period, he will face further protest action from the People’s Progressive Party (PPP).
Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo, has made good on his promise to have the President meet protests, everywhere he goes.
During a press conference of the Parliamentary Opposition yesterday, Gail Teixeira told reporters that the President went to Mabaruma yesterday, where he was met by protestors, just as he was on Thursday.
The international community and certain aspects of civil society have called on the President to declare an election date immediately. The UK, US, and EU have even given Government a thinly veiled warning that support for Guyana’s development could be affected as a result.
But the President has said that he is not in breach of the Constitution. Ministers of Government have even attempted to shift the onus to the PPP.
During the AFC press conference yesterday, Minister of Public Security and Leader of the AFC, Khemraj Ramjattan, spoke of the need for the party to support an extension of the election deadline in the National Assembly to solve this “unconstitutional” situation, implying that it may be the Opposition’s fault that Guyana has moved so far past the Constitutional deadline without holding elections.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News