PPP says Coalition ‘baiting GECOM’ into delaying election results for another few months

See below full statement issued by the People’s Progressive Party:

The increasingly embattled APNU+AFC Coalition persists in its misguided attempts to discredit the electoral process by perpetuating fallacious claims about so-called irregularities.

Time and time again, these claims have been exposed as blatant lies being told to the Guyanese people. The latest was detailed in a May 30, 2020 report published by Demerara Waves, headlined ‘APNU accuses GECOM of ignoring letters about PPP’s “glaring” electoral fraud’.

The Coalition’s Joseph Harmon, today, made outrageous and false claims about “electoral fraud” by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) in Regions 7 and 8. It must be noted that the Coalition, based on the declaration of election results prior to the commencement of the national recount, won these two regions at both the General and Regional levels.

Mr. Harmon made specific claims about electoral fraud in Region 7, but these have been exposed as lies. Here are two examples of the numerous lies being told.

First, he claimed that in Ballot Box 7079, a total of 352 ballots were issued, but 377 ballots were found in the Ballot Box. However, the Statement of Recount for Ballot Box 7079, Phillipai Primary School, make it clear that there were not 377 ballots in the Ballot Box; rather there were 227 votes cast – 223 being deemed valid and four being rejected ballots.

Secondly, he claims that in Ballot Box 7003, the wrong list of electors was found in the box. However, the Observation Report for Ballot Box 7003 explains that Ballot Box 7002 was brought out, instead of Ballot Box 7003 and this “resulted in a mix up” that was corrected.

The Observation Report also said, “No other error was found in this box.” Additionally, for greater clarity, images of the Statement of Recount for Ballot Box 7079 and the Observation Report for Ballot Box 7003 are attached.

Further, what troubling is that Mr. Harmon stated that the Police Commissioner, who is the Chief Immigration Officer, has confirmed that people who migrated voted at the March 2020 Elections.

This is so, especially in light of the fact that the PPP has found scores of people currently in Guyana, who were named by the Coalition as having migrated.

The APNU+AFC Coalition seems intent on baiting the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), with its fallacious claims, into illegally following it down a path that will, again, delay the declaration of election results by another few months.

It merits repeating that the APNU+AFC Coalition claimed victory on the basis of the results declared prior to the start of the national recount, embracing the fraudulent Region 4 declaration.

With the recount progressing and the fraud perpetrated in Region 4 being exposed, the Coalition has changed its tune, now claiming electoral fraud by the PPP/C.

This ludicrous position underscores the desperation of the Coalition, in the face of an electoral defeat. The PPP will continue to expose the lies being peddled by the APNU+AFC Coalition and will continue its efforts to ensure that the ongoing national recount is not derailed, but completed to allow for a democratic transition of government.

People’s Progressive Party

May 30, 2020