We will be completely justified in trusting the outcome of this election. A month ago I wrote a column pointing out that in a volatile, vitriolic and divisive campaign the nation was blessed in having a well run, unmanipulatable electoral process in which we could all depend to produce a free, fair and accurate result. Thanks to the procedures in place and independently vouched for, thanks to the well-trained staff, thanks to the six Commissioners and thanks to an intelligent and professional Chairman of unimpeachable integrity GECOM has done Guyana proud indeed.
I was able to write that the voice of the people would be heard unmuffled – that, as the old saying has it, the bell of freedom has been purely cast and will with truth resounding ring. And I concluded that we could be as sure as those in any democracy in the world, and surer than in most, that our election process fair is transparent and free of bias and is being administered expertly and even-handedly and that, therefore, whatever the result, the election would reflect correctly and unquestionably the will of the people.
Since that column appeared nothing has emerged to induce the changing of a word.
There have been quibbles easily explained, questions asked and promptly answered, doubts expressed and patiently refuted, apprehensions aired and all of them laid to rest.
Time has only strengthened the conviction that the electoral process in Guyana is in good hands and is impervious to manipulation. Independent observers have confirmed this over and over again.
What is more, the parties, presumably in all sincerity, solemnly signed up to a Code of Conduct whose singular focus, as the Chairman of GECOM pointed out, was the admirable one of healing the social fissures and cleavages which tend to open wide at elections time. And the Code, be it noted, applies to behaviour both during campaigning and after the results are known. There must be no moratorium on respecting one’s fellow citizens. “Decency,” as Steve Surujbally reminds us, “does not have an expiry date.”
It would have been statesmanlike and of huge benefit to the nation if the Presidential candidates, Donald Ramotar and David Granger, had issued a joint “Guyana Comes First” statement to the effect that whoever prevails tomorrow there should be peace and calm in the aftermath with any disputes handled within the constitution and the law – thus removing categorically any recourse to trouble in the streets or civil strife by their supporters. After May 11th emphasis must be on knitting up the political and social fabric of the nation which always becomes tattered and torn during campaigning time.
Voting will take place tomorrow. Here again, no objective observer – and no one casting his or her precious and vital vote – can be in any doubt that the procedures in place are proof against any falsification.
The provisions of our Constitution will delay the announcement of a winner beyond what some other democracies are used to but this should not be a concern. Accuracy and legitimacy will always take precedence over expedient haste. The final result will be fair, trustworthy and expressive of the people’s will. We can’t ask for more than that. No trouble should be brewed. For Guyana’s sake we should rally around the winner – and the winner should rally us together.
