GEORGETOWN, Guyana--“Today, this is a signal that we are not going to tolerate them in government behaving with impunity,” Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo declared. He was at the time addressing a large crowd of supporters who had moments ago staged a protest outside of the Ministry of the Presidency, calling for elections to be held now.
During a mini rally, the Opposition Leader braved the heavy downpours as he called on all Guyanese to join the fight to ensure democracy prevails.
“We are standing up for Guyana and for all Guyanese,” Jagdeo said, “This protest is on the side of the law…This is a strong signal to … all those Guyanese who believe we must stand up for constitutional rule.”
The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has ruled that the government was defeated by a no-confidence motion last year. This means that elections ought to have been held since March 21, 2019 – in keeping with the Constitution of Guyana, but the government remains in office and has not yet announced a date for the polls.
“This government is illegal and has been illegal since March 21…the only way they can change this is through elections,” the Opposition Leader posited.
The country is waiting on the CCJ to hand down consequential orders on July 12 – which will determine the way forward. The Opposition has submitted that the court order elections to be held within three months, but the Granger-administration proposed that the elections be delayed, for house-to-house registration.
“Let us see what the consequential orders are,” Jagdeo told the supporters, hinting that massive protests will continue if the government insists on occupying office illegally.
