Dear Editor,
I was a teenager in the 70’s at the height of rigged elections in Guyana by the late President Burnham and leader of the PNC. I saw the frustrations and despair of my father, an ordinary everyday Guyanese worker, vividly remembering him with his pen and paper writing down figures called on the radio for Port Mourant (birth place of Dr Cheddi Jagan) and of course, the PNC “won” there handsomely like the rest of the country.
I voted in my first elections in Guyana at the age of 32 years in 1992. I remember my father being so excited at the prospect of counting at the place of poll and other electoral reforms negotiated by former American president Jimmy Carter. I did my part too, I went for the training and worked as a presiding officer at a polling place in New Amsterdam. After the elections, I said to myself thank God that Guyana has finally had a free and fair elections, and I don’t think in my lifetime I would ever again see rigged elections in Guyana.
Fast forward to 2015. By this time, the AFC came on the scene with lofty principles and great soundbites as the third party being an alternative to the two major parties of Guyana and holding the balance of power. Many persons fed up with the arrogance and perceived corruption of the PPP decided to give the coalition of APNU+AFC a chance in 2015. Yes, I an Indo Guyanese and many like myself voted for the coalition and they got into government. Now before those 2015 elections my brother about a year younger than me (living in the US) and who witnessed with me rigged elections of the 70’s and 80’s vehemently cautioned me about my intention of voting for Granger as president. His words still ring in my ears today: “who gon tek them out back?” I remember saying man “we gon vote them out” if they don’t perform. He said “vote them out?” “U crazy they gon rig the elections”. I laughed it off and said “not this day and age man”.
Fast forward to 2020 March 2 elections. My brother’s words came to pass in a most sensational manner: in front of the entire world, the elections were rigged in a most clumsy and insulting manner that left most Guyanese numbed with shock and outrage. I had quietly seen the worrying signs of the climax of these rigged elections as early as 2016 and it was confirmed when Granger unilaterally appointed Patterson as elections commission chair in 2017. By this time the AFC had shed all notions of independence and simply became wolves in sheep’s clothing in my view.
Today, I am seeing cries of shared governance from people who gleefully accepted the reins of government with 0.3% or just over 4000 votes’ victory at the polls in 2015. Words cannot express my disappointment and grief at the hypocrisy of my fellow human beings. The PPP much to their credit accepted their defeat in 2015 and filed their petition in 2015. This is what democracy and fair elections are all about!!! The coalition in 2015 had a chance of a lifetime to build a country where both major races including many indo Guyanese helped to put them in office. It would be a gross understatement to say they subsequently screwed up that opportunity. Many independent persons like myself saw firsthand the dictatorial soul of the coalition in firstly the Patterson appointment and then it was bared for the world to see after the no confidence motion. I knew then they wouldn’t be able to win the 2020 elections and I told two government ministers of my observations.
Today is March 23, yes three weeks after the elections where I and my colleagues of the three chambers of commerce in Berbice worked as observers and witnessed a near perfect process in Regions 5 and 6. GECOM staff of both major races were professionals, extremely courteous and did a wonderful job. It is a great travesty and tragedy for Guyana that a few persons in GECOM had to make us a laughing stock of the world once more (The first when we went to the CCJ claiming 34 and not 33 was the majority of 65). I am personally very, very disappointed that the chair of GECOM Justice Claudette Singh did not take control of GECOM as the previous chairmen Dr Steve Surujbally and Brigadier General Joe Singh did.
Today, our country is at the verge of becoming a dictatorship and with a real risk of a catastrophe with the Covid-19 corona virus in our midst. I am calling on President Granger to stand up and make his legacy in history on the side of democracy. Sir I voted for you in 2015, not to see you take our country down the precipice, you are a good Christian and an honest and decent man. Please do what a good Christian would do, please take control of your party, call off the court challenge and let us have a recount of our votes.
Yours faithfully,
M Raffik
President,
Central Corentyne Chamber of
Commerce
