Following a call by the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) for the withdrawal of the vaccination requirement for registration, the Guyana Elections Commission on Friday announced that it is waiving the mandate for persons aged 14 to 17 years old.
When it announced the commencement of the just launched continuous registration process, GECOM had said that persons desirous of conducting any registration transaction are advised that they must provide proof of having been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to gain entry to the Registration Offices. In cases where applicants are not vaccinated, a negative PR test taken within 72 hours would be acceptable.
On Thursday, three days after continuous registration started, the PNCR said that by imposing a vaccination requirement GECOM was violating the constitutional rights of citizens.
“The constitution en-shrines a citizen’s right to elect and be elected as a fundamental guarantee and imposes only a minimum of necessary eligibility and administrative requirements for registration and for voting. The vaccination requirement fails purely on constitutional grounds, and GECOM must immediately withdraw it on that basis alone,” the PNCR said in a statement.
The party explained that the vaccination requirement is a “classic chicken-and-egg situation” since citizens require identification cards in order to be vaccinated but are being asked to be vaccinated in order to apply for identification cards.
The party’s statement added that it has instructed its Commissioners to advocate for the removal of the requirement.
“In making this call to GECOM, the party is, in no shape or form, underestimating the continued threat posed by the COVID pandemic. We, therefore, urge GECOM to put in place other effective measures, such as masking, sanitizing, well-ventilated and spacious offices, and social distancing to promote the safety and comfort of its staff and all visiting applicants,” the PNCR said.
In response, GECOM said on Friday that it remains cognizant that national registration of all eligible persons is a legal requirement as it is a constitutional obligation for it to register such persons. However, GECOM explained that it is responsible for creating the conditions for and the actual registration of eligible persons and in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, it cannot put its staff at risk. The Com-mission added that its safety measures are aimed at protecting its employees.
The guidelines were prepared in accordance with the provisions of Regula-tion 8 of the Gazetted Subsidiary Legislation – Regulations No. 1 of 2022 – The Public Health Ordinance dated Friday 28th January 2022, which stipulates that “every employer under this regulation shall ensure that appropriate COVID-19 guidelines are prepared and implemented to reduce the risk of transmission of the virus among workers to protecting employees against becoming infected with the Covid-19 Virus”, GECOM further stated.
“Notwithstanding the foregoing, and in recognition of the fact that many persons in the 14-17 years old age range might not have been able to be vaccinated for want of being in possession of National Identification Cards because they were never registered, a decision was taken to waive the vaccination requirement for this age group. This decision was taken in consultation with the respective Chief Scrutineers of the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) and the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), respectively,” a statement from the Com-mission said.
However, the full Com-mission would have to meet and decide whether to waive the vaccination requirement for persons above 18 years old. That meeting would be held on Tuesday.
GECOM is urging all eligible persons to follow the COVID guidelines when visiting registration offices. The process is expected to conclude on May 29, 2022.
The exercise is of crucial importance to first-time registrants.
During this registration exercise, any person who will be 14 years and older by the 31 October, 2022, 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, can apply for registration, providing they were never registered before.
