Opposition Leader Bharatt Jagdeo was floored when asked if the PPP intended to fly in overseas supporters to vote in the coming elections. This could be the only legitimate reason the PPP is suggesting that cleaning the list is secondary to ensuring overseas people are on the list. Jagdeo was lost for words, then eventually mumbled that all Guyanese, whether from Brooklyn Queens, are eligible to vote. He did not address allegations that the PPP have been using ID cards of overseas supporters to conduct fraudulent voting. He also refused to address the issue of the 50,000 fictitious, and 40,000 dead who are on the voters list.
Jagdeo acknowledged that the APNU-AFC government is not trying to use the call for House to House Registration to disenfranchised PPP supporters. Instead, he wondered if the government was calling for House to House Registration just to delay elections. However, he did not acknowledged that since 2012, PNCR Commissioner Charles Corbin wrote GECOM Chairman Steve Surajballi, and other commissioners making a case for House to House Registration to address the bloated list.
Jagdeo is attempting to make the bloated list an about disenfranchising overseas based Guyanese. He seems to suggest that the rights of overseas Guyanese to vote is superior to the rights of local Guyanese not to have their voters invalidated by fraudulent voting.
When asked if the present list is adventageous to the PPP, Jagdeo said it is not the list, it is policies that win win elections. Some political commentators said this is nonsense, since no matter the performance of a government, if a list gives a 50,000-vote advantage to the opposition, then the elections will not express the true will of the people. Jagdeo claimed that the Coalition won two elections with this list, and by extension suggested that it is OK. However, he did not address the issue of how the present list affected the Coalition’s margin of victory at the last two elections.
The Cater Center has acknowledged that the list is a problem, and suggested that GECOM create a list of overseas based Guyanese to monitor their voting on Election Day. Carter Center did not outline how all the overseas based Guyanese will be identified to be placed on the list, if not by House to House Registration. They also chose to ignore the 50,000 fictitious and 40,000 dead persons who are on the list.
Jagdeo said he will be writing President Granger to outline how the presence of 50,000 fictitious, 40,000 dead, 160,000 missing persons on the voters list could be addressed during claims and objections.
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