By Marcelle Thomas

Copyright stabroeknews

outgoing EU Ambassador

Guyana’s just concluded general elections saw an interesting outcome that few were prepared for and this country’s Elections Commission needs to take a serious look at the recommendations from the various observer groups and implement measures to make the electoral process here a trusted one, outgoing European Union [EU] Ambassador, René van Nes says.

“I think the reports of the various election observation missions are very serious recommendations about what Guyana can do in order to make the process even better, and not from some kind of misplaced arrogance – ‘You know, you should follow our rules or how we are’. Genuinely, if you look at those recommendations, we think that your process will even be better,” van Nes who has completed his three-year tenure here and will be returning to Brussels, told Stabroek News in an interview.

“And what was striking is that the four [foreign] missions, independently from each other, came to almost identical recommendations. There was very little difference between them, to the extent that we were really surprised and said, Wow! I mean, we all came to the same conclusion. And I know for a fact that they were drafted independently from each other. They did not sit together and say, ‘You know, let’s all write the same conclusion, the same recommendations. So, I mean, if those recommendations get the attention that they deserve, then I think they will contribute to even a better electoral process,” he added.