Guyana: Granger calls for calm as voters await official results

Nearly three weeks after voters cast their ballots in a regional and general in Guyana, incumbent President David Granger is appealing for “calm” and for the population to await the ruling of the Supreme Court and the final declaration of results by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

In an address to the country, Granger, who led the ruling coalition, A Partnership for National Unity plus the Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) into the March 2 polls, said that 18 days after casting ballots “everyone anticipated that this electoral process would have been completed by this time.”

“Our democracy has allowed for interested parties to approach the Supreme Court of Judicature for judicial review of our electoral laws. This legal process is ongoing, and we must await the ruling of the court. The electoral process is incomplete,” he said.

The main challenge to the coalition in the election has come from the main Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), which has accused the authorities of wanting to rig the elections in favor of the ruling coalition.

On Friday, the High Court began hearing an injunction granted to a private citizen blocking GECOM from ordering a recount of the ballots case in all 10 regions. -(CMC)