Presidential Candidate of the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C), Irfaan Ali, said he is very pleased that the incumbent coalition government has approved the return of approximately 300 Guyanese stranded abroad.
This approval encompasses Guyanese nationals in Trinidad and Tobago and in New York, New Jersey, Florida and other states in the United States of America and also in other countries. The approval is subject to strict guidelines by the Ministry of Public Health.
As a matter of fact, during a recent update on the national ballots recount, he said, “I am very pleased that Guyanese would be able to return home. A lot of Guyanese are out there in various cities and countries and they have been suffering. They have been going through very, very rough circumstances.”
However, Ali said that the same criteria used for the return of these Guyanese can also be used for the return of the international elections observers.
Obviously referring to government’s decisions to continuously deny a small number of observers from The Carter Centre and the International Republican Institute (IRI) entry to Guyana, Ali said, too, “I am of the view that with the strong public health criteria there is no rational reason to deny international observers the right to be here.”
He went on to explain that they have a “right to be here” because Guyana is a part of a global community.
The Presidential hopeful pointed out, “We are a part of an international community; we do not operate in a vacuum. We do not operate in isolation from what is taking place in the rest of the world. We are signatories to many, many agreements.”
Ali continued, “We are signatories to international standards as it relates to democratic norms, good governance; we are a part of the global community. We are a part of the [Organization of American States], we are a part of the United Nations and we have a responsibility to ensure that we do not deny these agents to be part of the democrartic framework of our country. And it is critical at this time because of what took place in Electoral District 4.”
