Police clash with protestors demanding Local Government polls

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Police clashed with a group of protestors outside the National Assembly building Wednesday, after they demanded that the long awaited Local Government elections be held this year.

The last Local Government elections were held on August 8, 1994 with the ruling People’s Progressive Party (PPP) winning 80 per cent of the Councils.

But for various reasons, the Local Government elections planned for 1997 did not materialise and the National Assembly deferred the 1997 elections to one year later. Since then, numerous obstacles have impeded Local Government elections even though the government in 2004 had named the month of October as the month for the polls.

At the start of the year, Western countries issued a joint statement pressuring Guyana to ensure that Local Government elections take place in 2013.