CGID strips Gonsalves of Democracy Prize

THE board and general membership of the New York-based Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy ( CGID) unanimously passed a motion at their town hall public meeting on Monday, July 27, 2020, to revoke the Democracy Prize which was awarded to Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines,
The CGID, which has a membership of 20,000, had awarded Dr Gonsalves the Prize in 2005. Over 100 supporters were present at Monday’s meeting.

The motion was moved by Mr. Jason Benjamin and was seconded by Dr. Michelle Luard. According to the motion, Gonsalves has violated the standards of democracy, as well as requirements of the Prize to which he was obligated.

The board mandated CGID President Rickford Burke to communicate its decision to Prime Minister Gonsalves and to request that the Prize be returned by the end of August. The announcement of the passage of the motion was met with sustained, thunderous applause.

This latest move by the New York-based body also comes in the wake of Dr Gonsalves’ comments pertaining to Guyana’s electoral impasse.
On Wednesday, June 12, 2020, Dr Gonsalves was quoted as saying, “We expect the CARICOM observer mission to deliver its report, and we expect that what is the recount would be honoured, and the Guyana Elections Commission will honour that recount and declare the winner in accordance with this recount. And anybody who then wants to challenge anything afterwards can go to court, but you have to declare the winner in accordance with the recount… I know a lot of opposition parties when they lose, or anybody who loses, they say, ‘Oh, so and so thief.’ It’s almost a boring repetition; we get the reports, follow the law and who wins, wins.”

PM Gonsalves was amongst CARICOM Heads, others being Prime Ministers Mia Mottley of Barbados; Roosevelt Skerrit of Dominica; Dr. Keith Rowley of Trinidad and Tobago; and Dr. Keith Mitchell of Grenada, who visited Guyana several days after the March 2, 2020 elections, with the aim of assisting in finding a resolution.

Guyana’s Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and other APNU officials, including Campaign Manager for the A Partnership for National Unity+ Alliance For Change ( APNU+AFC) Joseph Harmon, have condemned Dr Gonsalves’ statement, saying that it is premature, untimely and highly prejudicial and could contribute to a charged situation in Guyana.