GECOM not in a position to hold LGE by December – Bulkan
Friday, October 23 2015, Source
IN addition to naming additions – Mabaruma, Lethem, Bartica and Mahdia – to Guyana’s six towns in the National Assembly, yesterday, Communities Minster, Ronald Bulkan told Citizens’ Report that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) will not be able to deliver local government elections by December 2015.
“Their work plan doesn’t allow for it,” he said, “My understanding is that GECOM will not be able to hold local government elections by December.”
However, Bulkan disclosed that the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) government will name a date for the elections soon.
“An announcement is imminent,” the Minister said, acknowledging that the current Administration had committed to holding the elections before the end of 2015.
Asked about a meeting with GECOM, Bulkan stated that there is no face-to-face scheduled anytime soon. “A meeting with GECOM is not required to set the date,” he said.
SCARED OF FALLOUT
Meanwhile, when asked about the same issue, Opposition Leader, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, proffered the view that the fallout from salary increases, way above what was given to public servants, may have been a consideration of the government in pushing back the elections.
“First of all we were told that they were ready; that the Government was ready and that GECOM would be ready. We were also told that the Government wants local government elections urgently,” he said.
Jagdeo added, “We saw a mad rush and the violation of Parliamentary procedures and practices to get the pieces of legislation to pass in preparation for local government elections – all by a government majority in the House.
“And the suddenly we saw a lack of interest. We believe that because they have taken so much of a beating of on the salary issue, the unconscionable salary increases that they gave themselves, that they want to delay local government elections.”
According to him, the many stakeholders, including the diplomatic community, who have been pressing for local government elections under the former administration, as well as the current government, ought to make their voices heard.
“We have heard all sorts of frivolous excuses from those who were very strident in arguing that it was the PPP that wanted to slow down local government elections. We are urging the diplomatic community, as well as of those who have been so strident in their calls to have local government elections, to maintain their calls,” the Opposition Leader said.
Jagdeo stressed too that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) is ready for local government elections.
Meanwhile, a top official at GECOM a few months ago indicated that an election could have been made possible, but the necessary legal actions had to be taken. Considering delays in this regard, the source recently added that the elections may be possible in or before March 2016. However, the move to declare more areas as townships has repercussions for local government elections and as such it may be pushed back even further in 2016.
The official did say that there could be two sets of elections, one given the status quo, and another in the areas that are made into towns. However, the questions of costs and other important factors, such as demarcation of areas and voters’ lists are also major considerations.
“We are waiting to find out what they (APNU+AFC) want,” the GECOM source said.
Local government elections have not been held in Guyana since 1994. Prior to that, local government elections were last held in 1970. Subsequent to 1994, the elections could not be conducted because of the coincidence with the General and Regional Elections of 1997. Election-related violence and Parliamentary considerations that saw some amount of haggling between the then PPP/C government and the political opposition, the People’s National Congress (PNC) prevented the holding of elections.
