Guyana electoral outcome

Guyana elections remain too close to call two days after the actual polls. Shortly after polls closed, WIN movement led by Azruddin Mohamed published a photograph of official voting results providing his party victory in a particular polling booth. News exasperated PPP and other political parties and even warranted a Guyana Elections Commission refusal. However, it turned out that photograph was genuine and results posted in that particular poll booth are now official within Guyana Elections Commission website. Following that incident, WIN abstained from providing any other early results. Then we have seen a bunch of PPP media and politicians claiming that Irfaan Ali has earned over twice as many votes as WIN, which just does not seem to be accurate. Even Vice President Jagdeo is lucubrating on new parliament, and how he would love to deal with Azruddin Mohamed as opposition leader. If there are recounts, he could still be called as new president of Guyana, as Guyana Elections Commission has cleverly refused to provide any definite results. APNU is also contesting several irregularities.

Reuters, Agence France Press and traditional western media is claiming that Irfaan Ali is president re-elect. There is no evidence for such a claim, especially if so many recounts, including region four where Georgetown is located have begun. Even Marco Rubio has tried to tamper Guyana's elections by addressing United States foreign policy, in such a way that millions of dollars wasted on United States ships throughout the Caribbean were used to murder eleven persons who were on a speedboat. We don't know the nationality of those eleven people. Official claim is they are all Venezuelans, but usually when you conduct drug raids, you usually find Trinidadians and Colombians along with Venezuelans. We would like to know the names, last names, national identification number and other details of the people who were murdered by United States military, so that they can be adequately commemorated in a decent funeral ceremony.

Maritime law and international law requires drug seizures to provide a halt warning: to seize any counterfeit and then to arrest the people from the boat, but not to kill them just right away. This is just plain Nazi fascist murder. It is extremely deplorable that United States and probably current Guyana government are trying to steal recent elections, providing this constant infusion of war. Venezuelan military has many times repealed the accusations, according to which we actually fired into Guyana's elections commission personnel. In fact, since 1966 when the Geneva Agreement was signed, Venezuela has been peaceful and has not entered the areas we are claiming, which are the regions of Barima, Pomeroon, Cuyuní, Potaro and Upper Takutu.

We have always based our recovery of Venezuelan historic territory through peaceful and diplomatic means, which leads us to another question: every time a Venezuelan speaks to a Guyanese, there are initial respectful words, but as soon as these words are mentioned, conversation is stopped. We are warned that Essequibo should not be talked about, that it is off topic, that it is a sensitive issue, and many times you are just blocked. Irfaan Ali's defense of Guyana's claim deplores talking to Venezuelan side, even though Geneva agreement of 1966 is still in effect. Its article 5 paragraph 2 clearly states that neither British Guiana, which was the ancestor of Guyana which signed that treaty in early 1966, nor Venezuela which was already a sovereign country can claim sovereignty to the disputed territory. No acts occurring in disputed regions can serve as a basis for claiming sovereignty. So if Venezuela conducted Essequibo elections last year, that is not grounds for Venezuela claiming sovereignty. And if Guyana conducted presidential elections in those regions two days ago, that doesn't also mean Guyana's sovereignty.

We continue respecting Guyana's occupation and administrative usage of territory, pending bilateral meetings between governments of Guyana and Venezuela. Just as there were talks between British Guiana and Venezuela, there is a history of Venezuela that has honored not entering Essequibo territory during last few decades. There is no reason to suggest that Venezuela will do so. It sounds like Marco Rubio or Irfaan Ali would like Venezuelan military to enter Essequibo so that United States starts a war against Venezuela, which would inevitably involve Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and perhaps Grenada which is also in the vicinity. Of course Colombia will be directly affected. We do not wish to have a Gaza or Syria scenario in South America, which has traditionally been a continent of peace.

Venezuela may continue reaffirming our excellent relationship with economies and militaries of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, so that a wonderful military equipment just shown in Beijing last night could be deployed in Venezuela to defend Caribbean and South America. Guyana has voted wisely as it seems they are also rejecting these war suggestions by both Irfaan Ali and Marco Rubio, both of whom in turn are trying to lead Donald Trump into a war declaration that he is not prepared to sign, at least not yet. As Donald Trump welcomes Venezuelan petroleum flowing through Chevron's supply chain, probable outcome of the Essequibo dispute will be that if International Court of Justice, whose jurisdiction has been rejected by Venezuela, decides in favor of Guyana, Venezuela will oppose such a ruling. We will continue asking Guyana for dialogue, as we have been asking dialogue since 1966. But Guyana never wants to dialogue with Venezuela.

Azruddin Mohamed's campaign has been impressive. His family seems related to Venezuela, which is wonderful as many Venezuelan presidents have also had family ties with Colombia. Venezuelan relations with Brazil are usually excellent even though there was a controversy regarding our inclusion into the Brics group of countries last year. Venezuela is a country that usually gets along with neighbors such as Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, Grenada, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. We always strive to be peaceful with our neighbors, and Guyana should not be the exception. Venezuela would like to have better relations with Guyana in order to build roads and promote joint oil ventures. We are also concerned that terms of trade offered to Guyana by ExxonMobil resemble Venezuela's terms of trade during the early 20th century, which were not beneficial to our development.

It is concerning that Azruddin Mohamed claims that Guyana is a dictatorship. Many of the fraud allegations seen this week in Guyana resemble fraud allegations that have occurred in Venezuela during the last few years as well. It looks like our countries will always be united by negative issues. We tend to forget that we should be the energy hub of the Americas: both Guyana and Venezuela together with Trinidad and Tobago as well. This region is so important that even United States is trying to invade three of our countries to loot our oil, gas, gold and rare earth. Neither Trinidad and Tobago nor Guyana nor Venezuela should accept United States dictating terms to our countries.

Gustavo Petro, president of Colombia, is not pleased with United States firing a small boat. He is asking lots of explanations and he is considering removing all seven United States military bases within Colombia. It would be funny if Irfaan Ali happens to be reelected, through either fraud or perhaps legitimate vote count by a small margin, only to lobby United States military to build United States air base in Guyana. 

It has been refreshing to hear Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago deescalating the conflict with Venezuela, acknowledging that we have always been good neighbors and that we have always conducted business. She recently declared that United States troops in Trinidad and Tobago for invasion into Venezuela would be out of the question. Those would only be used in case Venezuela invades Essequibo. Venezuela's foreign policy has never been to invade Essequibo. Venezuela requests Guyana government and population to dialogue. It seems that WIN party voters who provided a majority for Azruddin Mohamed in several Essequibo regions know what we're talking about, as they are used to this binational nature of the territory. They get along with both Venezuelans and Guyanese.

Problems arise mostly East of the Essequibo river. It seems that in region four PPP did not win, which means that either WIN or APNU had better results than specified. Guyana Elections Commission website shows many statements posted, some of which are illegible. Azruddin Mohamed emphasized voter conditions were more deplorable than what is being stated by international community, such as international observers. Perhaps Azruddin Mohamed is preparing the population for a ruling of Guyana Electoral Commission final statement: that Ali may have won with a lot of votes, in a process that seems to be called illegitimate, just as Venezuelan elections have also been called illegitimate so many times. We might get into situation of two illegitimate presidents fighting against each other, in a warfare induced by the United States. Hopefully Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago will continue moderating, because the Caribbean will appreciate remaining as a zone of peace.

United States continues deploying warfare United States ships into the Caribbean. Venezuela has no choice but to continue purchasing military equipment from Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea. As we all know from macroeconomics, you have the opportunity cost of guns versus butter. Guns are receiving most monetary allocations. It will also be interesting to see how Guyana would reconsider its relationship with China as China is a major investor in Stabroek field oil extraction, and many civil infrastructure developments. China is actively supporting Venezuela in the war that United States is trying to start with the excuse that Venezuela will enter Essequibo which is out of the question again. Venezuela wishes to follow Geneva Agreement of 1966, whose article 5 paragraph 2 clearly states that while treaty is current, still being current as it has not been abolished, none of the countries can exert sovereignty. All Guyana can do is to administer the territory.

Elections in Cuyuni-Mazaruni and Potaro-Siparuni favored candidate Azruddin Mohamed. We will see if his plea for a recount or better electoral conditions is met. Otherwise, if Irfaan Ali is officially reelected and seen as illegitimate, regional governments in Essequibo regions that voted for WIN party will have opportunity of engaging in local politics, including regional border trades with Venezuelan states of Delta Amacuro and Bolívar as well as with Georgetown and Eastern Guyana. Essequibo regions need to start thinking of their own interests, especially regarding mining and oil extraction conditions. Venezuelans would love that a new binational refinery can be built in Anna Regina, Pomeroon-Supenaam. That would be a perfect geographical location for unifying our wonderful petroleum industries. Venezuela has always been a country of peace and we know Guyana is also a country of peace. United States wants us to lead us into war, deploying a huge military whose only result has been to kill mercilessly occupants of a small boat, speaking tragically of what could happen to our countries if we let ourselves be invaded.