The International Observers who have expressed an intention to return to Guyana to oversee the national recount exercise should be allowed to do so as they have every right to be here to see the conclusion of the electoral process.
This is the view of Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) Executive Member, Anil Nandlall, who, during a brief media update this afternoon, noted that an election lawfully ends with the declaration of the final results; adding that the results for the March 2, polls, have not yet been declared.
Nandlall said the Observers have a duty in law to be present here for the completion of the electoral process.
“Those teams that have been accredited have a legal right to be here under the Elections Observer Act …They were given permission by the President and accredited by GECOM. If there is a revocation, then it must be done in writing and then it must be published in the Official Gazette,” the PPP Executive Member noted in reference to the government’s ‘denial’ of the Cater Center’s return.
Nandlall said that in addition to the Caricom team, his desire is to see the other observers return here to oversee the recount, noting that there is still some time before the exercise is completed.
“At the end of the day we want a process that must be certified as a credible process, because we know of forces that are present and prevailing who would want to derail the process,” Nandlall cautioned.
The Washington-based Carter Center, had confirmed that it had deployed an Observer to Miami who was prepared to travel to Georgetown, on May 4, to observe the national recount, but the official was prevented from joining the flight due to the Guyana government officials not granting the necessary clearance for travel.
In a brief statement, the Carter Center had said it continues to reach out to Guyana Government officials to understand what is required to allow its team to return to Guyana.
The Center had said that it remains committed to providing an independent assessment of Guyana’s electoral process, including the ongoing recount exercise.
It should be noted that the Carter Center is among the group of international observers that have been publicly critical of the lack of credibility of the highly contentious Region Four count that is at the centre of Guyana’s current political turmoil.
The Center, in addition to other international observer missions, had subsequently denounced the declaration of unverified results, saying they lacked credibility.
