Rationality has supervened in the matter of the Region Four election count at last, courtesy of Barbados Prime Minister and CARICOM Chair Mia Mottley. Yesterday, she announced that following discussions, President David Granger and Opposition leader Bharrat Jagdeo had agreed that CARICOM would field an independent high-level team to supervise the recounting of ballots in Region Four. This would be done in accordance with the ruling made by the Chief Justice on March 11. CARICOM later clarified that the two leaders had agreed to a recount of all ten regions.
While this opens up the real possibility of a resolution to the impasse created by the illegitimate actions of Region Four Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo, most voters must regret the fact that it was necessary at all, considering that we would have had a credible result a week-and-a-half ago had the GECOM official only performed his duty under the law. As it was, neither Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield nor GECOM Chair Claudette Singh took the steps necessary to ensure he did so, and as a consequence, their roles too have come under scrutiny. All of that notwithstanding, we are where we are, and so this must be seen as positive news.
Prime Minister Mottley had led a team of CARICOM heads of government here last week, with the intention, she said, of finding an amicable solution to the challenges facing the country’s leaders. She also stated that loss of life, injury and damage to property must be avoided, a reference to some of the protests by PPP/C supporters over events connected to the counting of Region Four’s votes. “All parties must work hard to ensure that there is peace on the roads and in the communities across Guyana,” she was quoted as saying, “There has already been one death reported overnight. That is one death too many.” This was a reference to the fatal shooting of a Berbice youth, whom the police force had said attacked two of its ranks with a cutlass. Clearly, the leaders did not want to see Guyana descending into chaos, which is why they came.
At the same time, Ms Mottley had made it clear that “every vote must be made to count, and transparently so.” Speaking on behalf of CARICOM, she had called on both GECOM and the political leadership to work together to ensure that the tabulation of results was done according to the law. Guided by the information supplied by its own observers, the regional body therefore did not take a neutral position with regard to the election, and President Granger knew this.
This will not be the first time that CARICOM has undertaken a recount of votes following a general election here. It was done in 1998 after the December 1997 poll, although on that occasion it was not one region which had been challenged – at that time by the PNCR, which was in opposition − but all of them. CARICOM had found the result, which had been declared by GECOM, to be valid. One wonders in the light of that previous experience whether the leaders who came here already had that approach in mind as a route to a resolution, but the Barbadian Prime Minister in her statement, said it had been requested by President Granger.
One can only hypothesise that the president, who has behaved like the Sphinx since March 2, being both inscrutable and uncommunicative other than to intone periodically that he complies with the law, that the executive cannot interfere with GECOM, and that he trusts the commission to deliver the results of the election, regarded this as a route out of a dilemma. He was faced with the prospect of his government not gaining recognition, and being isolated by the West if he was sworn in on the basis of what was widely seen as a rigged count for Region Four. A recount, therefore, would represent a face-saver if his party has lost – which the evidence might seem to suggest that it has – and allow his supporters to accept an unpalatable outcome. A CARICOM mission would be the one which would be most acceptable to his base, and as said earlier, it has conducted a similar exercise here before.
A critical issue is the security and integrity of the ballot boxes, and where that was concerned, Prime Minister Mottley said they had agreed that steps needed to be taken to secure them until the recount took place. There will be some degree of anxiety among all the parties other than APNU+AFC in this regard, since they have said that some of the numbers on the Region Four Statements of Poll had been altered, and they will be undoubtedly fearful that the focus of those bent on stealing the election would now move to the boxes.
A long, drawn-out process would not be good for the mood or stability of the country. In addition, Ms Mottley wanted to reassure the public that the team would arrive “as soon as possible” and would start work straight away. A long wait is certainly not to be recommended. Both Messrs Granger and Jagdeo have agreed to abide by the results of a transparent recount.
In the interim, one expects the president to pull his supporters off the streets, and for Mr Jagdeo also to keep his off the road. Apart from considerations of peace, in these coronavirus days there are good reasons for avoiding public gatherings in any case.
When she came with the other leaders a week ago, the Barbados Prime Minister was quoted as saying, “We will work together to create the space for dialogue and resolution once there is an acceptance on the part of all parties that there is a higher interest beyond simply the result in this election.” Hopefully this agreement is evidence that the leaders of both our major parties have recognised that the nation’s interest supersedes any obsession with acceding to power.
The CARICOM Chair also said, “It is critical that good sense prevail.”
Many Guyanese will go to bed tonight thankful that good sense does indeed seem to have prevailed.
