Lawyers warn of far-reaching repercussions if President sworn in on unverified vote

The Guyana Bar Association late Saturday night warned of the consequences the swearing-in of a President with unverified results could have.

“The Bar Council expresses its deep concern that any swearing-in of a President of Guyana on the basis of the purported declared results will have far-reaching repercussions,” the Association said in a statement.

The Association was accredited as a local observer for the elections and two days after Monday’s poll said the elections process was balanced, free, fair and transparent.

However, it said after the issuance of its preliminary statement, its Observation Team noted that the process employed by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to ascertain the total votes cast for District/Region 4 from the Statements of Poll (SOP) in accordance with Section 84 of the Representation of the People Act, Chapter 1:03 was halted on March 4, 2020, prior to the completion thereof, and not recommenced to date.

The Bar Council further noted that a purported declaration of results for District/Region 4 was made on March 5, 2020.

“In the circumstances, therefore, The Bar Council of The Bar Association of Guyana joins international observers, particularly, the Commonwealth, Organization of American States, the European Union and the Carter Center, as well as the Diplomats from the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and Canada and such other countries and organisations in asserting that there can be no lawful declaration of results of the General and Regional Elections until all legal requirements have been complied with by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to ensure transparency and credibility of those results,” the Bar Association stated.

The Bar Council called on the Chairperson of the Elections Commission, Retired Justice Claudette Singh, whose reputation as a jurist the Bar Council is aware, to ensure that all necessary steps are taken so that the results can withstand local and international scrutiny and represent the highest international standards as will make all Guyanese proud in the process, before making any declaration required by law to be made by her.