Following is a statement issued by Peoples Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) General Secretary Bharrat Jagdeo:
In a statement issued yesterday the APNU+AFC said that it will not be accepting any declaration based on the figures derived from the National Recount.
This is in clear defiance of the international community, the Chief Justice, the CCJ and GECOM who have all made it clear that any declaration has to be made on the basis of the figures from the recount, and also in contrast to earlier statements by President Granger that he will accept any declaration made by GECOM.
No one should be suprised as the PNC which Granger leads and which is essentially the APNU+AFC, has a history of not accepting the results of every election that they have lost since 1992.
What we have to do now is to work to ensure that we have a declaration that is reflective of the will of the people and only one that is derived from the figures generated by the national recount can produce such an outcome.
If Granger and his band of riggers believe that they can continue to hang on to office after the declaration has been made then they are living in a fool’s world. If the international community was prepared to condemn and levy sanctions against people who are trying to undermine democracy, even before the declaration, just imagine the consequences the riggers will face if they refuse to leave office after the declaration – essentially staging a coup d’etat. Needless to say, such a move will be met by fierce resistance by the PPP and other forces fighting for democracy.
I therefore urge Guyanese at this stage not to be too concerned about whether they will accept the declaration or not as we will cross that bridge when we get there. The consequences for Granger and the APNU+AFC at that time will be as alluded to by Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro: “Democracy or Abyss?”.
