Communities Minister pushes for Local Government Elections by year end

Despite the concerns raised by the PPP coupled with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM’s) request for a six months notice, Bulkan believes that the citizens’ right can no longer be treated with callous disregarded.

Communities Minister pushes for Local Government Elections by year end

Local government elections will wait on no one. That is the view of Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan as he addressed the National Assembly earlier today. He declared that those elections could be held in December.

Bulkan was directly responding to the opposition People’s Progressive Party which claimed that the holding of the long-awaited local elections was impossible this year and could only be done in the latter half of 2016.

Bulkan in his rebuttal said “these elections, like time or tide, will wait on no one. It will not be delayed; it will not be deferred any further.”

Despite the concerns raised by the PPP coupled with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM’s) request for a six-month notice, Bulkan believes that the citizens’ right can no longer be treated with callous disregarded.

According to the Minister, The Commission is expected to make a decision at its next meeting in August whether to proceed with all the activities for the holding of LGE.

Once the approval is granted, GECOM will be in a position to hold the elections before the end of the year, Bulkan reasoned.

He said the government will not be dictated by its absent friends, referring to the PPP which is still to take up its position in the Assembly.

The Minister reminded that the PPP had promised to hold those elections while contesting the 2011 general elections but failed to do so over its three years in office.

“The obvious question is why this position by the opposition party… my suspicion is that they have a fear of people being empowered to manage their own affairs,” he added.

He believes the PPP has a “desire to keep the people subjugated and to exercise control.”

Bulkan told the House that the holding of local elections has little to do with politics and everything thing to do with giving people their constitutional right.

 As such he invited the opposition PPP to support the work of GECOM and the constitutional right of all Guyanese to have these elections held sooner than later.

Local government elections have not been held in over two decades. 

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