The Guyana Elections Commission (Gecom) is embarking on the sixth cycle of continuous registration today and is urging all eligible persons to have in their possession the relevant supporting documents and apply to register.
Anyone who will be 14 years or older by August 31, 2014 and is a Guyanese citizen by birth, descent, naturalization, or is a citizen from a Commonwealth country living in Guyana for one year or more, is eligible for registration during this exercise, a press release from the Commission said. The registration exercise will close on June 21.
During the exercise, eligible persons are required to visit the registration office that is responsible for their areas of residence to apply for registration. These persons must have in their possession their original birth certificate issued by the General Register Officer or a valid Guyana Passport; original marriage certificate (and original birth certificate) – in the case of a name change by way of marriage; original deed poll and original birth certificate – in the case of any change of a name by deed poll; original naturalization certificate issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs and original birth certificate/valid passport – in the case of naturalization. However, evidence (photocopy/duplicate) of an application having been made for naturalization will not be accepted.
However, baptismal certificates, expired passports, photocopies of relevant documents or letters from priests, elders, head masters, village captains/toshaos and Justices of the Peace or existing ID Cards will not be accepted as source documents for registration.
Persons who are eligible for registration who do not have in their possession the aforementioned relevant supporting documents are urged to take immediate steps to acquire same in order to facilitate their respective registration during this continuous registration exercise.
In addition, Gecom says persons who were already registered and are interested in applying for a name change in the case of the change of name(s) by marriage or deed poll, since they were registered, or those applying for correction (s), if there is incorrect information on their National ID Cards or those applying for a transfer if they have changed their addresses since they were last registered can apply for these changes. Also, persons who were already registered could request that their photographs be retaken if the quality of the photograph on their ID Cards is poor or they could collect their new ID cards if they have yet to do so.
Gecom has 28 permanent registration offices located in all Ten Administrative Regions. Persons eligible for registration are required to visit the registration office that is responsible for their area of residence to apply for registration or to uplift national ID cards if they had registered previously and failed to collect the ID cards.
Registration is being done weekdays from 9am to 1pm and from 2.30pm to 6pm and on Saturdays from 10am to 2pm at the following registration offices: in Region One: Mabaruma Registration Office, Port Kaituma Registra-tion Office, Moruka Registration Office; Region Two: Charity Registration Office and Anna Regina Registra-tion Office. In Region Three: Parika Registration Office and Pouderoyen Registration Office.
In Region Four the registration offices are the Diamond Registration Office located at Area ‘M’ Diamond; Soesdyke Registration Office, Soesdyke NDC Office; South Georgetown Registration Office, Action Tyre Building, Croal and Smyth streets; North Georgetown Registration Office, former Prime Time building, Church Street, Georgetown; Transfiguration Church (annex), Mandela Avenue; Sheriff and William streets Registration Office; Coldingen Registration Office and the Better Hope Community Centre.
In Region Five the registration offices are the Mahaicony Registration Office and the Fort Wellington Registration Office; in Region Six, the New Amsterdam Registration Office, Kaitano Building, Princess Elizabeth Rd, New Amsterdam, the Kildonan Registration Office and the Corriverton Registration Office. In Region Seven, the Bartica Registration Office and the Kamarang Registration Office; In Region Eight, the Mahdia Registration Office and the Paramakatoi Registration Office; in Region Nine, the Annai Registration Office and the Lethem Registration Office and in Region Ten, the McKenzie Registration Office and the Wismar Registration Office.
These offices will be closed on Sundays and holidays.
Gecom reminds the public that it is their civic duty and legal responsibility as Guyanese who will meet the eligibility requirements to apply for registration during this cycle of continuous registration. By doing so they would ensure that they are included on the official list of electors for future elections, if they meet the other eligibility criteria, apart from being issued with national ID cards.
Section 6 of the National Registration Act, Chapter 19:08 states that it is obligatory for persons who meet the registration criteria to apply for registration. Persons eligible for registration could be prosecuted, fined and/or event imprisoned for failing or refusing to apply for registration. In the case of eligible persons under the age of 18 years by the qualifying date, the parents/guardians could be prosecuted for failure/refusal to apply for registration.
