Be patient in awaiting results of the polls – OAS Chief Mission, Bruce Golding.
− Mission looks forward to publication of results at earliest opportunity.
DPI, Guyana, Wednesday, March 4, 2020
Guyanese are being urged to be patient in awaiting the publication of official results of the polls by the Guyana Elections Commission.
The call comes from the electoral observer mission of the Organisation of American States’ (OAS), which was assigned to the March 2, 2020, Regional and General Elections in Guyana.
OAS Electoral Observer Mission. Chief of Mission, Bruce Golding, sits in the middle. (Third from L & R).
At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown, OAS Chief of Mission Bruce Golding, commended the people of Guyana on their strong democratic commitment, which he said was reflected in their peaceful and enthusiastic participation in the polls on Monday.
“We wish to applaud the people of Guyana for their patience in awaiting the result of the polls and we encourage them to continue to do so.” Golding urged.
He said the mission looks forward to the publication of the official results of the election at the earliest opportunity.
The electoral observer mission also made recommendations to GECOM, which it believed would enhance the commission’s structure. It has suggested the use of new systems that rely on technology to improve and enhance the delivery of results, such as scanned Statement of Polls which can be sent immediately via technology to the Chief Elections Officer.
“We are of the view that technology can be much more helpful. Development of a technology solution that allows the collection and transmission of images of the statement of polls and coalited results from regional locations to a central server located in Georgetown, would allow Guyana to implement a more modern tabulation system which facilitates the publication of preliminary results.” the Chief of Mission explained
Adding that the largely manual tabulation system coupled with Guyana’s geography, infrastructure and population distribution creates significant challenges for the organization of elections and the timely delivery of results.
The OAS electoral observer mission has also recommended that Guyana engages in a multi-stakeholder discussion on the makeup of GECOM, with a view to enhancing its structure.
The mission also recommended discussions be held on campaign financing.
Golding said a detailed report will be compiled and presented to local stakeholders and to the OAS permanent council in Washington DC.