Guatemala City, by Yuliza Muñoz -AGN- The President of Guatemala, Alejandro Giammattei, received the delegation from the Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States -OAS-.
Led by the Chief of the Electoral Observer Mission, Eladio Loizaga, the delegation held a meeting with the Guatemalan President at the Presidential House, where they discussed the operational plan for the second round of presidential elections on August 20.
Mr. Loizaga explained that the meeting showcased the work carried out by the mission in collaboration with various Guatemalan entities.
Loizaga said, “In this meeting, we reported on the work the observation mission has carried out. The team had been working with the authorities of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal before we arrived as chiefs of mission. They have also met with other sectors of civil society.”
The Ministers of the Interior and National Defense also attended the meeting. They talked about the security scheme for next Sunday, which contemplates the deployment of thousands of soldiers and officers of the National Civil Police to guarantee the people’s protection and the proper supervision of the ballot boxes.
Public Invitation
Additionally, the Chief of Mission called on the Guatemalan citizens to participate in the voting and to cast their ballots.
Eladio Loizaga stated, “We want the population to exercise this constitutional right. We also urge people to participate and understand what this process is about. All within an environment of tolerance and, above all, to respect the election’s outcome. We hope that the result expressed in the ballot by the Guatemalan people will be respected.”
Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of OAS Role
The purpose of the mission is to observe, as its name suggests. There are three essential pillars to this process, which are as follows:
- Non-interference
- Transparency
- It is not a substitution team and has the utmost respect for the country’s laws.
He mentioned, “We will have observers participating throughout the national territory to monitor the electoral process and the opening and closing of the tables in the voting centers and will be reporting any event that may occur.”
