Let’s stop the posturing and get to work; the people have spoken

Jan 21, 2012 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,
I continue to be amazed by the ire of the People Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) on the issue of the Speakership of the National Assembly. What I fail to comprehend is the flawed logic that is presented to the people of Guyana by the government in their pursuit of the sympathy vote on this issue.
First there was President Donald Ramotar who, minutes after Mr. Raphael Trotman was sworn in as Speaker of the 10th Parliament of Guyana, took to the airwaves to lament that APNU and the AFC had squandered an opportunity to usher in an era of enhanced political cooperation and consensus.
The President went on to say that he regretted that the election of the Speaker was not the result of genuine dialogue between the political parties.
Anyone not living in Guyana, or who was not paying close attention to the political situation in Guyana would have had no problem with Mr. Ramotar’s grumblings, for on the surface they seem reasonable and extremely noble. However when one makes an objective examination of the historical record, Mr. Ramotar’s request and his remarks are found wanting.
Immediately after the November elections, the PPP/C, and by extension Donald Ramotar, had a very unique opportunity to usher in that new era of enhanced political cooperation and consensus. The PPP/C could have been magnanimous and offered APNU to share in governing the country.
Ministerial opportunities and /or other high level government assignments could have been offered to the opposition. Instead, the PPP/C, by choosing to return (almost intact) the Jagdeo cabinet, sent a message to the nation that there would no such outreach; no political cooperation, no consensus.
Next we had Mr. Prem Misir in KN January19th 2012 “Violation of Parliamentary Convention hurts “coming together” trying to convince the nation that the parliamentary opposition committed a constitutional breach by choosing to elect from among their ranks the Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
The convoluted logic that was used by Mr. Misir is hardly worthy of a response. What readers need to remember is that none of the many countries that Mr. Misir cited in his letter have an executive President with the unfettered constitutional powers like the President of Guyana, and none of their constitutions even closely resemble ours.
The Constitution of India, New Zealand, Great Britain, St. Lucia (some of the countries he mentioned) are vastly different from the 1980 Guyana Constitution. In fact, if Guyana still had the Westminster style constitution that was in place in 1964, the PPP/C would have found themselves as  the parliamentary opposition if APNU and the AFC  had chosen to come together to form the government.
I would like to remind Mr. Misir that it takes two to tango and this “coming together” that he espouses must not be advanced by academic posturing and empty rhetorical utterances. For there to be a real coming together then all sides must be willing to compromise and sacrifice.
The PPPC cannot arbitrarily demand that the opposition parties give up something tangible when they have shown no willingness to reciprocate. The PPPC cannot bemoan the fact that there was no consensus in the selection of the Speaker, when they set the precedent of non-cooperation and strict partisanship, immediately after Donald Ramotar was sworn in.
Further I find Mr. Misir’s attempt to use the 1961 and 1964 elections results to advance his argument as ludicrous. In that historical period Guyana was a British Colony, embroiled in an anti-colonial struggle against the backdrop of the cold war.
Students of history are well aware of what transpired during that period and the geo-political considerations that influenced the decisions that were made by the Americans and the British. However, what Mr. Misir fails to mention is that we are in a new historical period and the dynamics are vastly different from those of the turbulent sixties.
Article 13 of the Constitution states; “The principle objective of the political system of the State is to establish an inclusionary democracy, by providing increasing opportunities for the participation of citizens, and their organizations in the management and decision making that directly affect their well being”.
The PPP/C would be advised to spend less time complaining and more time trying to live up to the letter of the constitution as
articulated in Article 13. People are fed-up with the constant bickering and the partisan politics that have stunted our post-independence development.  I would suggest that in the spirit of coming together that the President and Mr. Misir so eloquently articulate, that the PPP/C unclench its fist and extend a hand to Mr. Trotman and the parliamentary opposition.
This would be a powerful symbolic first step that may well usher in that new era of cooperation and consensus.
Let’s stop the posturing and get to work; the people have spoken.
Mark Archer

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