Mere days after their arrival in Guyana, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Elections Observation Mission to Guyana has pronounced that impending Regional and General Elections will be “pretty competitive.”Head of the CARICOM Mission, Earl Simpson and Deputy Head, Josephine TamaiIn this vein, Earl Simpson,Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale, Head of the Mission told members of the media during a briefing at the CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara yesterday that his team will over the next few days closely monitor what is happening in Guyana.In two days, thousands of Guyanese will head to the polls to elect those they deem fit to govern the country, hopefully for the next five years.Here by Presidential request to CARICOM, the Chief of Mission said his team of ten will be observing the process from May 6 to May 13. Josephine Tamai, Chief Elections Officer in the Elections and Boundaries Department of Belize, is the Deputy Head of the mission.Simpson, who is also Director of Elections of the Electoral Commission of Jamaica, said he and Tamai arrived as an advanced team on May 6, last.Since then,Dwight Howard Hawks Jersey, he said, they have paid a courtesy call on Head of State and current Presidential Candidate of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Donald Ramotar, and met with Police Commissioner Seelall Persaud and his senior officers.The latter meeting, Simpson said, was to get an overview of the security situation in the country, and an assessment of the plans and strategies of the elections process, culminating in the conduct of the elections and the announcement of the results.According to Simpson, they have had meetings and briefs with the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), the other Presidential candidates and their political parties,Wholesale Cheap Jerseys, as well as the President of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU),cheap nfl jerseys, the Guyana Human Rights Commission, Chairman of Private Sector Commission, the President of Guyana Trade Union Congress and the Guyana Council of Churches.Simpson said that he was also slated to be part of meetings of all Chiefs of Mission of all observer groups present in Guyana.According to the Chief of Mission, he has been charged by the CARICOM Secretary General, Ambassador Irwin La Rocque, to observe the elections process: including the campaign period,Andrew Desjardins Jersey, the opening of poll on elections day, the voting procedures during the course of the E-Day, the close of poll at the end of day, the counting of ballots, the preparation of statements of poll and transmission of the results to the returning officers and GECOM.Simpson told media operatives that they are also here to observe the conduct of electoral officers and political stakeholders and the overall electoral environment. He said they are also here to observe and assess the outcome of elections and the immediate impact on the social and political environment.The Head of Mission said after observing voting procedures and counting on polling day, they will compile a preliminary statement to be issued to the media on initial assessment of the process.Media Operatives were told that a briefing session will be held with the team that observed elections in various districts, after which they will prepare a final report that will outline observations and assessment of the process.It, Simpson said, will include recommendations where necessary. This will later be disseminated to the government, GECOM and leadership of all parties who participated in the elections.Simpson said that observers will visit as many polling locations and stations to take a broad representative sample of the process as possible.“In addition to the persons whom we have already met, we look forward to meeting with as many Guyanese as possible. We will cooperate closely with other international and local observer groups to ensure that we maximize our coverage. It is important to point out that we are committed to being neutral, impartial, objective and independent. Let me say clearly that we are unable to visit every polling station or to be present everywhere.”The team, he said, comprises persons with vast electoral experience that spans elections administration and political presentation.“Our varying experiences will no doubt allow us to provide meaningful insights into the electoral process. We are here to observe the process and form an impartial judgment on its credibility. We have no executive role,Cheap Jerseys From China,” Simpson said.Pressed about their observations so far, through the media and otherwise, Simpson said “the sense is that it is going to be a pretty competitive elections and we will closely monito