Govt. seeks intellectual authors behind elections fiasco

Aug 09, 2020 News

…President Ali announces “review”

President Irfaan Ali

The People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) Government led by President Irfaan Ali has made a strong commitment to review the events of Guyana’s five month-long 2020 elections.
It is vowing to hold those accountable who sought to “pervert and corrupt” the system.
Addressing his inauguration ceremony yesterday, President Ali made it clear that the painful events of the last five months are etched into the minds of Guyanese all across the world, “as vigorous attempts were made to destroy our democratic credentials, and deny the will of the electorate.”
“Therefore, a review of events – related to the electoral process over the last five months – will begin shortly in order to determine, forensically, exactly what transpired, and to hold accountable any persons who sought to pervert and corrupt the system,” President Ali said in his address at the National Cultural Centre.
Guyana’s 2020 Elections only came to an end on August 3, bringing to finality, the five month-long process dubbed “the mother of all elections.”
Though the voting process which ended on March 2nd, a timely conclusion to the election was marred by a series of events – the fraudulent acts of Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo, and the Chief Elections Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield and a string of court litigations brought by members of the then A Partnership For National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) coalition… all aimed at granting a false victory to that party.
Already, the CEO is facing three private criminal charges related to the fraudulent declaration of results.
At the conclusion of the national recount, however, the will of the people was reflected revealing a win for the PPP/C.
It was owing to these events that President Ali vowed to ensure it never reoccurs.
“All of us have an obligation,” he said “to the nation and to ourselves to ensure that never again should any generation of our people be subjected to such unlawful behaviour.”
More importantly, Ali committed to pursuing the necessary reforms for a more transparent electoral process more transparent and our democracy stronger – a call that has been echoed by many in the regional and international community who bore witness to Guyana’s elections.
The President then went on to commend member states of CARICOM and the international community including the Organization of American States, the Carter Center and the Commonwealth Group of Nations along with the resident diplomatic corps from the United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union and the United States who “fearlessly defended our people’s political rights.”
“Some of those who stayed alert with us, through those dark days are with us as a new dawn dispels the darkness of despair and shines a light of unbounded expectation on us today,” President Ali said.
Further, he paid homage to the late Barbadian Prime Minister and the Leader of the Commonwealth Elections Observer Mission, Owen Arthur, who played an integral role in highlighting the fraudulent acts of Clairmont Mingo during the electoral process.
“He was a true friend of Guyana, a man committed to justice and the rights of the people…one man who put our country before himself in his determination that democracy should not die in Guyana, nor should our people be deprived of their political rights,” Ali said.

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