United Republican Party [URP] Presidential Candidate Dr Vishnu Bandhu on Monday declared that he has now relinquished his status as a United States citizen and can contest the March 02 general and regional elections.
The URP gained a total of 432 votes in the 2015 general and regional elections.
Dr Bandhu’s name appeared on his party’s nominations list even though the process was not complete; the Constitution bars anyone with dual citizenship from contesting the elections and candidates are required to make a statutory declaration that they meet the qualifications.
In an interview with the News Room, Dr Bandhu said his intentions were always to relinquish his United States citizenship ahead of the upcoming elections.
“I went through the process and I got my certificate of loss of citizenship of the US [United States] approved on the 16th of this month [January],” Dr, Bandhu stated
Dr Bandhu went on to state that a copy of the certificate was then sent to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) with the aim of informing them that he no longer has dual citizenship.
Dr Bandhu said he was never secretive about his status.
Bandhu provided the News Room with copies of his approved certificate of loss of nationality from the US Department of State as well as a letter from GECOM allowing him to contest the upcoming election as a presidential candidate.
“I did not lie. I have been very sincere, I have been very honest,” said the party leader.
“I am here to serve our people; I am not here to be served like the PPP and the APNU. I am here to serve as a servant, that’s the difference between myself and them,” Bandhu declared.
It was following Nominations Day on January 10, 2020, that Dr, Bandhu wrote a letter to GECOM informing the body that he had dual citizenship.
