The damning efforts by the leadership of the APNU+AFC to stay in power by any means necessary have brought nothing but humiliation upon its members and the country at large, says Sir Ronald Sanders, Ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to the United States and the Organisation of American States.
The official said that the most recent instance of embarrassment came when the USA was moved to invoke sanctions against those who have been responsible for or complicit in undermining democracy in Guyana.
In his most recent publication of his perspective on the electoral saga, Sir Ronald pointed out that the US has not identified these persons facing the said sanctions because of privacy laws. Be that as it may, he said that this state of affairs should be no comfort to anyone as it is the beginning of sanctions that will be graduated in proportion to further violations of democracy and the rule of law.
Sir Ronald also noted that the governments of Canada, Britain and European Union countries are contemplating similar action against those who are undermining democracy here. He said that this demonstrates that they have reached the end of the long rope they gave to Guyana’s officials to pull back from the precipice to which they took themselves.
In addition to this, he reminded that the Permanent Council of all 33 member states of the OAS will meet on July 21 to consider the situation in Guyana while adding that the matter will not end there, particularly as three of the largest OAS members, Brazil, Canada, and the US, have now announced strong positions publicly. Those nations have made it clear that Guyana’s elections declaration must reflect the will of the people.
The next step he said, would be a ‘Ministerial Meeting of Consultation’ at which all member states could be urged to take actions, including sanctions, in accordance with their own laws and capacity.
Considering all that has taken place, the Ambassador said that the people of Guyana have shown remarkable patience. He said that the citizenry deserved freedom from the suffocating circumstances into which they have been plunged. He said, too, that any government that comes to office must honour the Guyanese people by delivering good governance and policies of equality and transparency that tolerate no form of discrimination
