The CARICOM Secretariat, the Commonwealth Secretariat, and the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (GS/OAS) are currently in Dominica on a 3-day working visit. According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Senator Francine Baron, the three organizations are in the country on the invitation of the government to discuss electoral reforms with relevant stakeholders.
The Special Joint Mission will be in the country from August 6-9. The Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) will meet with the group on August 8. The group will also be meeting with major political parties, civil societies, the electoral commission, government agencies, and the common people.
The visiting group will discuss electoral needs with the people and evaluate existing electoral systems in Dominica. The team will also determine the need to introduce ID cards for voting purposes, as well as revise provisions of the electoral register. Senator Baron urged all stakeholders to meet with the team with a view to contributing to the proposed electoral reform agenda.
Baron blamed the opposition for inciting the people against government in the light of the proposed reforms. She said everything the Skerrit-led administration is doing is in the best interests of the people, but the opposition remains bent on discrediting the good works of the government on every front.
While the opposition has been riling people up and encouraging them to protest and cause trouble when elections are called, this Government has been bringing the facts to the people.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Senator Francine Baron
After their mission in Dominica, the Joint Special Mission will make recommendations that agree with global electoral practices and present these to regional authorities for implementation.
This article is copyright © 2019 DOM767
