Dear Editor,
Our nation is in the process of another important elections, specifically Local Government Elections to be held on November 12, 2018.
Many of our citizens, either from Parliamentary and other political Parties, independent groups or as individual candidates, are engaged in the process to become elected representatives within the various Municipalities and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils while thousands of others will be executing their constitutional and democratic right to vote for those of their choice.
Campaigning is a natural and integral part of the process for the purpose of bringing awareness to programmes and policies of those who seek these public offices. These campaigns, whether through public meetings or personal interactions, in addition to their primary objective of awareness, unfortunately hold the potential for statements which are counterproductive to the fostering of harmony, to be enunciated.
If that potential were to be realized, then the challenges it can pose to our society, as what regrettably obtained in the past, need no explanation or convincing.
It is in this context that the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), with a constitutional mandate for the promotion of harmony and good relations, as agreed by the various political Parties within our country’s Parliament, seeks your assistance for you to do your part and to encourage all to keep the campaigns and other interactions, including social media, free of any utterance which can impact negatively on national harmony and good relations amongst Guyanese.
Guided by lessons on elections from our history, the ERC believes that the assistance sought from you is extremely important given it is a task it cannot accomplish on its own. Among other things, a campaign free of hate, racial and all other forms of incitement is most desirable and essential to the efforts of building and sustaining a cohesive nation with a common destiny.
The promotion of harmony, while constitutionally mandated to the ERC, is a vital process that requires the efforts of all of us. The Chairman, Commissioner and Staff of the ERC encourage that the campaign, the electoral procedures on November 12 and the period following be proliferated with respect and tolerance in a demonstration to ourselves and others that while we will disagree in the process, it is not a reason for hostility through hatred.
Let us together use this opportunity and challenge ourselves to remove whatever barriers to togetherness and humanity that confront us as we endeavour collectively to promote harmony, unity and good relations. Elections must not be a process that divides us.
Let us also use this opportunity to strengthen the bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood and to make foremost the welfare of this land that is home to all of us; our Guyana.
The ERC takes this opportunity to extend best wishes to all the candidates who continue to dedicate their time to become representatives of the various constituencies; to all the staff and volunteers involved in the process and to you whether you are eligible to cast a ballot or not. Peace, during and after the process is in the hands of all of us.
Yours faithfully,
Rev. Dr John Oswald Smith
Chairman
Ethnic Relations Commission
