Vigilance necessary to prevent a repeat of March 2020 events - Mustapha

An opportunity for a repeat of the events that threatened to turn Guyana into an undemocratic, pariah, state, must never be allowed, according to Executive Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Zulfikar Mustapha.

He said, “On the observation of the third anniversary of those elections and with freedom restored, we must never forget the disgrace the APNU+AFC coalition brought to our country and people. I urge that together we endeavor to ensure they never get the opportunity to repeat such atrocities.”

March 2, 2023 marked three years since the March 2020 General and Regional Elections debacle, which saw Guyanese plunged into machinations aimed at undermining the will of the people and the consequent fight to protect Guyana’s democracy.

Mustapha said, “March 2, 2023, marks three years since that infamous general and regional elections held in 2020 the results of which took a staggering five months to be officially declared. During that fivemonth period, the glaring attempts by the then APNU+AFC coalition government to steal the elections and deny the will of the Guyanese people, unashamedly unfolded in real time for all to see. They were ably assisted by their cohorts nestled within the secretariat of GECOM. In their attempts to rig those elections, they trampled upon the constitutional processes that are enshrined to protect and effect free and fair elections.

“With efforts led by the Bharrat Jagdeo, the General Secretary of then Opposition the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), that period also saw Guyanese from all strata of society standing up to safeguard their democracy and their freedom to chose a government of their choice. These efforts were supported by a number of local and international observer groups and diplomatic missions. Our country was in the international spotlight for the reasons as the selfish actions of the APNU+AFC coalition tarnished Guyana's image.

“The sustained efforts to protect our democracy and international pressure brought to bear on the APNU +AFC, saw the true results that reflected the will of the Guyanese people being declared on August 2, 2020, our Party declared the winner and its Presidential candidate, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, sworn in as Guyana's 9th Executive President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.”

Mustapha noted that since August 2, 2020, in less than three years, the PPP/C government has placed Guyana on a trajectory of transformational development, has retaken its place as a regional leader in agriculture and other areas, and has marked it place on the global stage with the Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030, as well with the receipt of the world’s first TREES credits, which were issued by the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART), on December 1, 2022.

PPP/C gov’t committed to preserving Guyana’s democratic credentials

The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) is committed to ensure that the events of March 2, 2020 are never repeated, according to PPP Executive Member and Attorney General, Anil

Nandlall.

And he stressed that the incumbent Administration will work to ensure that Guyana’s democratic credentials are preserved.

Nandlall said, “As we approach March 2, I want you to be assured that your government is very much alive to those realities that we experienced and we will work to ensure that the democratic credentials of this country are maintained, and that we continue to work to deliver a better tomorrow for every single Guyanese.

“…we must not forget the lessons that were learnt from those elections. We