Andrew Ayre
The ABC countries, along with a number of civil society organizations in Guyana, have reiterated their call for the holding of local government elections this year.
The opposition recently approved a bill for local government elections to be held by August 1, 2014, but People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary Clement Rohee said while his party was ready for Local Government Elections, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) was not.
PPP-appointed commissioners of GECOM have advised the party that the commission has yet to establish boundaries and provide voter education about the new system, he revealed. “For instance, in Georgetown, there will be a mixture of first past the post and proportional representation. We get the distinct impression from our commissioners that it doesn’t seem that they are ready for local government elections,” he said. The polls have not been held since 1994.
In a joint statement, the local embassies of United States of America, Britain and Canada said a year ago, political party leaders, civil society, private sector representatives, and members of the diplomatic community expressed their hope that 2013 would be the year that Guyana moved to ensure its citizens benefit from strong and effective local governance.
Significant progress
The statement noted that while 2013 passed without local government elections being held, significant progress was made to set the stage for these historic elections in 2014.
“Four bills establishing a reinvigorated framework for local governance were approved by the National Assembly and three received presidential assent. Together with the 2010 Local Authorities Act establishing the electoral framework for local elections, the legislative path to elections has been cleared,” said the statement.
According to the organisations, in anticipation of local government elections, GECOM has intensified its preparations and expanded voter education outreach to familiarise people with the voting process.
The Local Government and Regional Development Ministry has been hosting seminars and workshops with stakeholders to promote voter education.
Additionally, GECOM Chairman, Dr Steve Surujbally has stated that the Commission is fully equipped and ready to stage the elections. It has already demarcated the boundaries and constituencies in 69 of 71 districts, and each district has been targeted for voter education.
“Once a date for elections is announced, GECOM can begin the statutory steps required by law to hold local government elections. By all accounts, GECOM is well prepared and poised to ensure free, fair, and transparent local elections whenever called upon by the government to do so,” the groups asserted.
Throughout 2013, all political parties repeatedly expressed their eagerness for local government elections, their desire to make their case to the voters, and their interest in competing in localities throughout the country.
As President Donald Ramotar observed in July, the polls are “badly needed, because many of the problems we face are due to the fact that we did not have local government elections”.
The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C); A Partnership for National Unity (APNU); and the Alliance For Change (AFC) have all begun campaigning in many regions in anticipation of these historic elections.
Guyana Times Editorial
All of this augurs well for 2014 as the year of local government elections. Indeed, as the Guyana Times observed last July, “there is a dire need for local government elections to give citizens the opportunity to choose whom they wish to represent them at the local level”.
As international development agencies have long recognised, the tangible benefits of local democracy go far beyond the act of casting a vote. Effective and efficient public administration coupled with healthy local governance can drive development efforts.
Local government institutions bring government closer to the people, fostering greater inclusion, civic responsibility, empowerment and participation.
“We agree with the Times that ‘only when people have transparent and accountable institutions at all levels of government – national, regional, and local, will they have confidence in their future’,” the diplomatic release said.
The Constitution affirms that “local government is a vital aspect of democracy” that should allow as many people as possible to participate actively “in the task of managing and developing the communities in which they live, and it mandates that local elections be held every three years”.
