OAS 20 member team heads to Guyana for May 11; warns against personal attacks during campaign

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By Fareeza Haniff in Panama City

[www.inewsguyana.com] – A 20 – member observer mission from the Organisation of American States (OAS) to Guyana will be headed by former Minister of Foreign Affairs & Trade of Belize, Lisa Shoman for the May 11 general and regional elections.

During an interview with the Guyanese media in Panama City just before the VII Summit of the Americas, Assistant Secretary General, Ambassador Albert Ramdin said the team will be in Guyana just days before the election as the mission expects it to be peaceful.

“They will try to cover much of the country as possible which will focus on the most inhabited areas…We will be looking forward to peaceful elections and proper conduct of election officers and the people, and hopefully everything will go well.”

He urged political leaders to focus on issues during their campaign and not launch into personal attacks.

“It’s always an exciting time for politics and campaigning and one can only hope the political leaders and candidates will behave in such a way that will be conducive to peaceful elections,” Ambassador Ramdin said.

He further noted, “A campaign has to be fair in many ways since the issue should be central to campaign not personal attacks, not language that can make unnecessary difficulties that is what we expect especially in a multi – ethnic society.”

Ambassador Ramdin said he expects to see a well-organized election and proper conduct by all political parties.

Shoman is an Attorney and is now an opposition Parliamentarian in Belize. Sje once headed an electoral mission to Jamaica. During her visit to Guyana, she is expected to meet with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), political parties and other stakeholders in order to assess the country’s preparedness for elections.