First Head of the European Union (EU) Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Guyana, Urmas Paet yesterday cited the APNU+AFC coalition and opposition PPP/C for utilising state resources to campaign for the March 2 general and regional elections.
“The mission saw governmental donations provided in the context of APNU+AFC campaign events, in particular [in] Region Nine,” said Paet, who added that to a lesser extent, the PPP/C was also observed using state resources at the regional level. “In-kind vote buying in Indigenous communities was a widely reported practice of both APNU+AFC and PPP/C,” Paet told the media at a press conference at the Marriott Hotel, where the mission’s preliminary statement on the elections was given.
The mission also highlighted that the government’s Department of Public Information (DPI) extensively promoted the ruling coalition’s campaign activities.