GCCI wants open, transparent hiring process to fill vacant positions at GECOM

Statement by the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the Dismissal of the
GECOM’s CEO, DCEO and RO District 4

The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has continued to follow keenly the
developments at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) since the conclusion of the General
and Regional Elections (GRE) 2020.

On June 2, 2021, the GCCI issued a statement expressing that as an organization, the Chamber was
pleased at the steps taken at that time to hold recalcitrant officers of the GECOM accountable; this
included the Chief Elections Officer, the Deputy Chief Elections Officer, and the Returning Officer
for District 4. As an accredited observer, the Chamber highlighted that it witnessed several acts of
obfuscation, open defiance to the instructions of the Commission and the Courts, as well as partial
actions during the course of the GRE 2020.

Today, August 12, 2021, it was reported widely in the press that the three recalcitrant officers have
been dismissed from the GECOM. The GCCI would like to state that this is a step in the right
direction for Guyana. This is based on our first-hand observation of the partisan and unprofessional
actions of those officers during GRE which placed Guyana at risk of entering into the league of pariah
states.

The Chamber looks forward to an open and transparent hiring process to fill the now vacant positions
at the GECOM with technically competent and impartial officers to execute their statutory
responsibilities. We would also like to reiterate that these developments represent an opportune time
for us as a nation to undertake the necessary electoral reforms, and underscores the urgency with
which they ought to be undertaken. Thus, the GCCI calls on the leadership of Guyana to ensure that
the electoral reforms process is undertaken as a matter of highest priority so as to ensure that there is
no risk of the recurrences of GRE 2020.

The GCCI anticipates the electoral reforms process to be one which has the input and involvement
of a wide range of stakeholders, so as to solicit ideas on the strongest sets of reforms possible. The
Chamber stands ready, as a partner in national development, to support the electoral reforms process
and anticipates this important undertaking to be supported by all citizens of Guyana.

-END-