'This was a good election'
- Commonwealth in preliminary view
Stabroek News
March 21, 2001
Some of the smaller political parties have mixed reactions to the
manner in which Monday's general election was conducted.
Several persons complained about not being able to vote because they
were not on the official list of electors, or on the addendum.
The Rise, Organise and Rebuild Guyana (ROAR) movement said it was
prepared to accept the results of Monday's general elections come what
may despite the debate over some voters' disenfranchisement.
Campaign Manager Salahudeen Nausrudeen felt the "glitches were
minor and will not affect the results of the elections."
Reflecting on the day's exercise, Nausrudeen said his party observed
the polling process itself "started very well."
But he pointed out that there was a period of acclimatisation which
the polling officers needed to "build a rhythm" and then it
was "easy sailing."
In Black Bush Polder, ROAR claimed that it encountered ten of its
supporters who could not vote because they were not on the
registration list although they possessed the means by which to do so.
There were four more such cases in Canje, but "whatever the case"
ROAR "is prepared to accept the results [of the elections]."
However, the People's Republic Party (PRP) "felt partly cheated"
leader Nateram Das said.
He said his supporters simply refused to vote because they lost total
confidence in the exercise. This reaction stemmed from that party's
court action against the Guyana Elections Commission over the way it
handled a matter regarding the PRP's constituencies.
Nonetheless, the PRP was grateful that the process was peaceful.
Samuel Hamer of the Guyana National Congress (GNC) did not want to
elaborate on his party's concerns over the elections.
Still in a state of framing its own position on Monday's poll,
The United Force's (TUF) main grouse at the moment was with one of
its candidates not being able to cast his vote because of a situation
which developed since February.
TUF's party executive member Malcolm DeFreitas said: "The
mechanisms were against" his supporters.
C.N. Sharma, Leader of the Justice For All Party was not pleased with
the many frustrations his supporters experienced. He said among some
of whom he spoke with, about 15 in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica),
chose not to capitalise on that vital moment in a country's electoral
process of deciding who should be their government for another term,
in this case, five years.
Nonetheless, Sharma has given kudos to GECOM Chairman Joe Singh for a
"remarkable" effort at spearheading order and calm during
the entire exercise.