CARICOM Chair says... Future of Guyana is in Mingo’s hand

CARICOM Chair says… Future of Guyana is in Mingo’s hand

Mar 13, 2020 News

Chairperson of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, has stated that the future of Guyana’s cohesion and economic stability lays in the hands of the Returning Officer (RO) of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Mr. Clairmont Mingo.

Chairperson CARICOM and Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley

Mottley made these statements during a press engagement Thursday morning with Prime Ministers Dr. Keith Rowley of Trinidad and Tobago; Roosevelt Skerrit of Dominica; Keith Mitchell of Grenada; and Ralph Gonsalves of St.Vincent and the Grenadines.
They all travelled to Guyana to resolve post-elections tensions.
The team of CARICOM Heads met with representatives of all of the political parties contesting the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections and Commissioners of GECOM with the aim of charting a way forward.
During that press conference, Chairperson Motley specifically stated that, “…even though a statute puts power in the hands of a Returning Officer, that Returning Officer will understand that he holds in his hands the future and stability of Guyana as we go forward, because every vote must be made to count.”
She continued, “There is no doubt in our minds that there is at stake far more than who will be the President of Guyana. What is at stake are the lives and the stability of the people of Guyana.”
She added that the country is on the cusp of turning the corner economically, but it must also be on the cusp of making every Guyanese a winner and not a loser.

Caricom press briefing

“Our fear is that if the process is not transparent that we put at risk too much. I therefore hope that the people of Guyana will work together to ensure that there is calm; there is peace.
“One life lost, as I said last week is one life too many. Let us not have any other person affected at this point,” she asserted.
Prime Minister Mottley was also keen to highlight the ruling made Chief Justice (CJ) Roxane George-Wiltshire, regarding election declarations made by Mingo—which were deemed unlawful.
She emphasized that the ruling made by the CJ was absolutely clear and as a result, she hopes that there will be an adherence to, not just the judgment, but to the spirit of the judgment.
Against this backdrop, she said, “We hope, therefore, that good sense would prevail on all sides. We have asked both sides to be able to speak to their supporters.”
The Chairperson of CARICOM disclosed that she is cognizant that Guyana is a sovereign state and CARICOM nations cannot get involved in the internal processes of the country.
“But we are family, and family does not stand by and watch others in the family suffer without making themselves available to be able to aid the process,” PM Mottley pointed out.
Mottley further added that CARICOM is aware that tensions will not be “miraculously achieved and changed overnight.”
She noted that the most important thing that Guyana should tackle, even as it fights the Coronavirus, if for the people to remain calm, patient, and allow both sides and their supporters to understand that it is the only way to process and transparency.
“I’m satisfied that the President and the Leader of the Opposition are aware of our position. I’m satisfied that they too have agreed to act in the best interests of this country.
“But they must now ensure that all under them too will act in that way. Failing that, we believe that we will have to continue to keep engaged. This is not a single event,” the Chairperson emphasized.

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