Opposition candidate Ali sworn in as Guyana’s president

GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Guyana´s opposition candidate was sworn in as president on Sunday, hours after being declared winner of the disputed March 2 general election in the oil-rich, cash-poor South American nation. Irfaan Ali, 40, of the People´s Progressive Party (PPP) was named the top vote-getter by Guyana Elections Commission chief Claudette Singh 154 days after the poll, following a recount, court battles and allegations of fraud. Outgoing leader David Granger, 74, said his coalition “respects the lawful consequences of the ´declaration´” by the elections commission, but also said claims of electoral fraud and other irregularities would be taken to the High Court. Granger appealed to his supporters to be peaceful. Ali called for national unity in this former British colony whose population is almost evenly split among ethnic lines, with descendants of Indian indentured laborers supporting the PPP and descendants of African slaves backing Granger´s coalition. “There is only one future and that future requires a united Guyana, that future requires a strong Guyana,” Ali said. The election in Guyana, a country of 750,000 bordered by Brazil, Venezuela and Suriname, was being watched more closely than might ordinarily be the case because the winner will be in control of a coming oil boom. Last December, ExxonMobil began commercial exploitation of a huge 2016 oil discovery off the coast, and production is expected to grow from 52,000 barrels per day to 750,000 from 2025.