The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has taken a decision to remove the vaccination requirement for the 14 to 17-year-old population to register, with the stipulation’s total removal expected to be determined at the election body’s statutory meeting set for next week.
GECOM’s alteration to its registration requirements comes on the heels of concerns raised by the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR)’s about the constitutionality of such an imposition, citing the “Chicken and egg” scenario where an Identification (ID) card is required to get vaccinated, while the presentation of a vaccination card is needed to get an ID card.
The party, earlier this week, called for the provision of proof of vaccination and a negative PCR test to be completely removed. It said on Thursday afternoon: “Imposing a vaccination requirement for registration blatantly violates the Guyana constitution. The constitution enshrines a citizen’s right to elect and be elected as a fundamental guarantee and imposes only a minimum of necessary eligibility and administrative requirements for registration and for voting”.
It added that the vaccination requirement “fails purely on constitutional grounds”, and GECOM must immediately withdraw it on that basis alone.
But GECOM said it reserves the right to create the conditions for and the actual registration of persons. The Commission stressed the importance to protect its staff, and that such measures, particularly the provision of a negative test, could aid in keeping its workers safe.
Aside from its right, the Commission said that its guidelines were prepared in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 8 of the Gazetted Subsidiary Legislation – Regulations No. 1 of 2022 – The Public Health Ordinance dated Friday 28th January 2022, which stipulates that “every employer under this regulation shall ensure that appropriate COVID-19 guidelines are prepared and implemented to reduce the risk of transmission of the virus among workers to protect employees against becoming infected with the Covid-19 Virus”.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and in recognition of the fact that many persons in the 14-17 years old age range might not have been able to get vaccinated for want of being in possession of National Identification Cards, because they were never registered, the Commission took the decision to waive the vaccination requirement for this age group.
Guyana Standard was informed that the decision was taken in consultation with the respective Chief Scrutineers of the main Parliamentary Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) and the governing People’s Progressive Party (PPP/C).
In this regard, an Internal Memorandum dated March 9, 2022, was dispatched electronically to all of the Commission’s Registration Officers instructing that the vaccination requirement be waived to allow for unvaccinated eligible persons between the ages of 14-17 years old to be registered.
However, GECOM has made it clear that persons within this age range visiting any GECOM Registration Office to apply for registration must adhere to the routine Covid-19 preventative measures e.g., the correct wearing of masks, sanitizing, and practising social distancing.
