President Irfaan Ali Sworn in as Guyana’s new leader

President Irfaan Ali

The presidential candidate for the main opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, was on Sunday declared president elect of Guyana.

In addition, following the declaration by Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Retired Justice Claudette Singh, Dr Ali was sworn in as the new President of Guyana. 

Initial reports are that the following posts have been confirmed and sworn:

■  Prime Minister – Mark Phillips

■  Vice President – Bharrat Jagdeo

■  Attorney General – Anil Nandlall

■  Minister of Parliamentary Affairs – Gail Teixeira

In a joint statement, the Ambassador of the United States of America, H.E. Sarah-Ann Lynch, the British High Commissioner, H.E. Greg Quinn, the Canadian High Commissioner, H.E. Lilian Chatterjee, and the Ambassador of the European Union, H.E. Fernando Ponz-Canto, congratulated the people of Guyana and the Guyana Elections Commission for bringing to a peaceful and orderly conclusion the 2020 elections.

“We congratulate the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) on its electoral success and Mohamed Irfaan Ali on his swearing in as President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. We thank President David Granger for accepting the results as befits the dignity of his office. We thank all the political parties, technical advisors and all observers – international and domestic – who participated in the electoral process. We thank GECOM Chairwoman Claudette Singh for having the courage of her convictions to uphold Guyana’s Constitution.

We look forward to working with President Ali and his government as it confronts many immediate challenges, including the need to address the social and economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the development needs of Guyana’s people. We also look forward to seeing this government at its outset reach across political divisions to unite Guyanese of all ethnicities, races, and regions, around meaningful progress on constitutional reform and reconciliation.

As friends of Guyana, we look forward to working with all to continue to support Guyana’s development for the benefit of all its people.”

Guyana’s election were held on March 2, 2020, but until today the results were contested in court. Calling for his supporters to remain calm, outgoing President David Granger said his coalition will respect the elections declaration, but “will challenge the declared results lawfully, peacefully and purposefully.”

President Irfaan Ali is the first Muslim to be head of government in Caricom and the Caribbean.