Granger, Ramjattan plug national unity gov’t

Nov 17, 2011 News

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…as Ramotar stays away from Merundoi Presidential Forum

David Granger kept security at the top of the agenda and Khemraj Ramjattan stuck to his mantra of increasing wealth for all Guyanese by cutting corruption and making use of massive sums that would have otherwise been siphoned off into illegal pockets.
But the two men found common ground on how they want Guyana to be governed – by a government of national unity.
Granger, from A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and Ramjattan, of the Alliance for Change (AFC), were the only two of the four presidential candidates heading into the November 28 polls who showed up for the Presidential Forum organized by local organization, Merundoi.

Donald Ramotar, of the incumbent PPP/C stayed away, with chief campaign spokesman Robert Persaud calling the forum an “opposition” show.  Peter Persaud of The United Force (TUF), was also absent.
The PPP/C has spoken of a “conspiracy” by the AFC and APNU to amass enough votes to make the PPP/C lose the control it has had of the National Assembly even if it wins the Presidency.
Ramjattan was asked what decision the AFC would take if after the votes are counted it is found that neither the PPP/C nor APNU had enough votes to form the government and needed its support to do so.
He was clear that the AFC would not form a coalition with either of the parties, but would instead choose to form a government of national unity. Granger shared the same position when he was asked to respond.
The forum was held at the Theatre Guild, in Kingston, Georgetown, and was moderated by communications specialist Abraham Poole.
The candidates were first given 10 minutes each to make their presentations after which questions were entertained from the audience and from the moderator.
Granger was up first, saying that the turn of the century brought along the start of the presidency of Bharrat Jagdeo, the crime wave on the East Coast, the decline in the quality of life of Guyanese, and the decay of the education system among other societal ills.
Granger identified “the criminalization of the state” as the gravest problem, saying a few greedy people have taken control of the country, allowing for drug trafficking, gun running, and smuggling.
He said that if APNU gets into office, the coalition of 10 parties and other groups, would aim to correct these problems by reforming the Guyana Police Force. He spoke of plans to pay the security forces better and have them better equipped with sea, air and ground transportation.
He said that drug trafficking, backtracking, smuggling , graft and other similar issues represent a threat to good governance.
Granger also spoke extensively on restoring the education system, creating employment and creating a solid economy. That he said, would be APNU’s plans to make Guyana a “normal country.”
When Ramjattan took to the stadium, he went down straight to business in outlying the AFC’s vision: cutting corruption, reforming the constitution, increasing wages and salaries, setting up a state development bank to spur entrepreneurship.
He championed the AFC plan to conduct Government’s business in a transparent way and to return “exemplary” conduct to the offices of the state.
Ramjattan said that the AFC would repeal recall legislation that prohibits Parliamentarians from leaving their parties and still maintaining their Parliamentary seat. He said that repeal the legislation will allow for the independence of Parliamentarians.
He put forward the AFC plan to remove the executive presidency, and devolve power from central government, allowing local communities to manage their own affairs as a vital aspect of democracy.
Ramjattan surmised that $20 billion extra would be available for Government spending if corruption is cut out. He also talked of improving industrial relations.
He trumped up the AFC appeal for Guyanese to stop voting along ethnic lines, and give the party’s “young, compassionate” team a chance to govern Guyana.
Ramjattan said if the AFC gets into office, among the party’s first actions would be to establish a procurement commission to govern to procurement of goods and services and set up an anti-corruption squad.
Granger said among APNU’s first tasks would be to set up a Commission of Inquiry to determine where the problems are and correct them. He said, too, that his first tasks as president would be directing the strengthening of the Criminal Investigation Department.
Among the audience at the forum were those belong to Guyana’s disability committee. Two visually impaired persons were allowed to ask questions and the candidates explained their plans to prove for them and include them in the development process.

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