A BUTTON AND A FLYER

Oct 05, 2009 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

It came in a brown envelope, addressed to the Peeper. There was a button inside, white background, red writing- a symbol of communism. The Peeper had a read, a good laugh and then deposited it in the most appropriate place, the rubbish bin. The Peeper has no time for such luxuries in hard times.

Ever since the Robert Simels trial, we have had diversion after diversion. One controversy blended into another, one issue into the next. The latest twist is some mail which is circulating about a third term for the President. This is a non-issue. This is pure political diversion and only detracts from the serious issues facing the public.

The public needs to be forewarned about the circulation of this flyer in which a coalition is said to be supporting President Bharrat Jagdeo for a third term in office. The public needs to ignore this flyer. It is of no significance.

President Bharrat Jagdeo has already signaled that he is not interested in running again. Even if he were, the Constitution does not allow him and there is no way that the opposition in Guyana is going to support any amendment to the constitution to allow this to happen. There is no way also that the PPP will support any such measure since half of them inside there also want the opportunity to become President.

Look, President Jagdeo has served as President for the past ten years. During this time we have had the worst crime wave ever, massacres which outdid the atrocities of the sixties; we have had an underperforming economy, a great flood and the collapse of a major financial disaster. We have also had serious allegations leveled against at least two ministers of the government, one of which attracted a statement from the US State Department; something that is not usual for a small country like Guyana.

Our President has come under a great deal of pressure and perhaps it is time that he fades into retirement and prepare the way for someone else to take over the ship of State. He was a surprise choice when he assumed the presidency and he has tried his best. Sadly his best was not good enough.

Right now, instead of being preoccupied with this non issue of a third term for President Jagdeo, the people of Guyana should be considering being generous and offering our beloved and great leader an early retirement. President Jagdeo has served us well and he needs to go off on pre retirement leave. At least if he goes off early, Uncle Freddie will not have to day after day be lamenting about him in his column.

The public must therefore not get worked up about this third term issue. This is just a ploy to take your minds off the problems that the country is now facing.

The only persons interested in a third term for President Jagdeo are those who have made a lot of money during his administration and may be worried about his investments. But these are not individuals who will create a stir. In fact, they can hardly create a stir in their stomachs, much less to create a buzz around town about a third term for the President.

The President is more honest than Burnham. When he says that the question of a third term is just speculation, he must be believed. So let us lay it to rest, once and for all. The opposition parties should not be lured into wasting any more energy on this question since it will distract them from more important issues which need protesting , issues such as the distribution of house lots to the ruling party.

Term limits were not imposed by the PPP. They emerged during the constitutional reform process and thus were a product of political compromise between the political parties represented in the reform process.

There is a disconnect between the political parties and this notion of term limits. Term limits for the President imply that political parties can no longer have maximum leaders. Term limits mean that at least every ten years the ruling party would need to find a new Presidential candidate.

The political parties however have not adapted to this need and in fact the leadership of the main political parties is still dominated by the traditional idea of leadership, the same idea that produced Burnham and Jagan. That era has gone and therefore it is the political parties rather than the Constitution which need to change and which need to throw up leaders from within its ranks who will succeed the incumbent President.

What the Peeper wants to receive is an envelope from those aspirants announcing their intentions to challenge for leadership, not a button and a flyer about something that will never happen.

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A BUTTON AND A FLYER

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