Nagamootoo optimistic about peaceful elections
- But warns citizens to be vigilant for strife-makers
By Abena Rockcliffe
Moses Nagamootoo, who has ambition to be Guyana’s next Prime Minister under a government of national unity, strongly believes that Guyanese will enjoy peaceful General and Regional elections once the incumbent Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) refrains from steering things in a different direction. Nagamootoo’s Party—the Alliance For Change—joined A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) last Saturday and the two will go to the May 11, polls as one. In a recent exclusive interview with Kaieteur News, Nagamootoo said that his team is doing all it can to get the message across to Guyana that while getting the PPP out of office is the best thing for their future, violence is not an option in the movement to do so.
Prime Minister hopeful, Moses Nagamooto6
Nagamootoo said that elections will be peaceful “unless the PPP sends their goons to create violence.” In this regard, the long standing politician expressed, “I believe we have to be on the lookout as they (PPP members) will try to incite intolerance—particularly in the indo-Guyanese communities—to try to shut out others from going into those communities, because they believe that the Indian communities are their fiefdom.” The former PPP member said that the incumbent Party has already set a tone for “that sort of immoral behavior.” Nagamootoo has for sometime been speaking out against racial division and PPP’s reliance on that to garner votes. During the most recent interview, Nagamootoo said that the PPP has, over the last three months, been setting the tone for what may arise nearer to elections. He added that a Party’s resort to the race card to win votes is about the lowest it can go. The politician said that the PPP is likely to try to agitate Indians “because they fear we will steal their votes. They feel they own Indians and Indians have no right to vote for no other political party.” On the issue of possible civil unrest, Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Donald Ramotar, recently stressed the major concern of the Guyana Defense Force (GDF) should be to keep things under lawful control during the elections season. The President said this as he addressed over 100 officers during GDF’s annual officer’s conference. Ramotar told officers that election, “by its nature, is very competitive and may be divisive.” The President reminded that Guyana has a multi-ethnic society and ethnic insecurity can therefore be aroused during the campaign, and that this can lead to unrest. He told the army to be on high alert for any such eventuality and said that he will expect that such be dealt with sternly. In this regard, Ramotar pointed out that the joint services’ early voting is intended to provide them with the full opportunity to discharge their responsibility fully and professionally. The President said that the GDF is an essentially professional and non-partisan entity, and noted that even though officers and ranks alike are entitled to vote in accordance with the law, they are not allowed to participate in acts of “political propaganda or militancy.”
