While not definitively confirming the postponement of Local Government Elections (LGE) which is scheduled for March 13 this year, Local Government and Regional Development Minister Nigel Dharamlall says the exact date for the polls will be revealed once the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) wraps up its internal work.
Speaking with this publication during an exclusive interview on Tuesday, Dharamlall noted that there are many issues unfolding at GECOM which need to be addressed prior to the hosting of the elections.
“GECOM has been doing what it has to do to make sure that the elections are held at a proper time. I believe that the Opposition has been…doing a lot of underhand work to stall the efforts to have the Local Government Elections on March 13. So, with some of the changes that have to happen, in terms of orders that have to be issued, I think that as soon as GECOM is finished with its internal work, we would be in a better position to announce an exact date,” the Minister related.
Attorney General, Anil Nandlall had previously expressed that GECOM may not be able to go to the polls on the date announced by the Minister.
“Unfortunately, based upon the way events are unfolding at that agency, we have had constant delays. Though the Minister has appointed a day for the elections to be held, from all indications, it appears that GECOM will not be in a position to hold those elections,” Nandlall had contended.
GECOM has already completed the statutory steps, such as claims and objections, to extract an Official List of Electors for LGE.
However, the agency was forced to postpone Nomination Day after the Opposition went to court to challenge the voters list and process used.
LGE, which are usually due every two years, was last held in 2018. At the last LGE in November 2018, the then PPP/C Opposition had secured 52 of the 80 Local Authority Areas (LAAs). This followed the holding of the LGE in 2016, during which the PPP/C also claimed the majority of the LAAs.
