Ignoring conventions

Nov 10, 2012 Editorial

In Guyana we seem bent on fashioning our own methods. We often ignore conventions or better, we adopt conventions when they suit our purposes. For the first time we have a minority parliament and while there have been minority parliaments all over the world we still behave as though this is a novelty. In the end we are unable to proceed with the business of the National Assembly because the government benches say that there are conventions that should be followed.
The first issue had to do with the appointment of the Parliamentary Select Committees. Because there has always been a majority government certain appointments followed quite logically. This would have given rise to a tradition. But things become confrontational with the minority parliament. The majority opposition insists on certain numbers and appointments to the Parliamentary Select Committees. The government, however, believes that tradition should prevail.
Never before have so many parliamentary matters been taken to the courts. This now is the trend of the minority parliament. When opposition rulings are made the government feels duty bound to challenge those rulings in the court. However, the courts simply direct the litigants to what one would consider a basic—matters of parliament are for resolution by parliament.
The first inkling that the things would always be confrontational was when there was to have been the election of the Speaker of the National Assembly. Again the government benches contended that since the speaker was always from the party with the largest bloc of votes in the House then the government should elect the Speaker.
This was not the case because the majority opposition decided that it should have control of the National Assembly. In the heady moments of parliamentary control the opposition made forays into areas that were the preserve of the government. It sought to modify the national budget when that is the preserve of the government.
Since then, it has been seeking the removal of a Government Minister. The opposition passed a motion of no-confidence against the Minister and the refusal of the government and its Members of Parliament to heed the no-confidence vote, now appears to have brought about a stalemate. The opposition is simply refusing to allow the Minister to utter one word in parliament.
Parliament, like the Executive, is an independent arm of the constitution. The third is the Court. None can dictate to the other. Since the Minister was appointed by the Executive it is left to the Executive to remove the Minister. This has not happened. The result is that matters of national interest cannot be proceeded with under the name of that Minister.
The government insists that there are conventions and there must be. If the National Assembly passes a no-confidence motion against a government, then that government must step down and call elections within six months. The opposition feels that having passed a no-confidence motion against a Minister that Minister should step down.
Legal purists have told the Speaker of the House that the Parliament cannot enforce the no-confidence motion and indeed this is the case because Parliament cannot dictate to the Executive. However, one British Member of Parliament has said that in other jurisdictions having failed to negotiate a no-confidence motion the Minister would have resigned. He said that there is a convention that supports such a move.
Obviously, in Guyana conventions only apply to special purposes and this alone would suggest that this country would remain backward until Eternity. It would seem that the opposition is rooted in the convention of opposing just about everything that the government does. And the government has adopted a principle of fiercely resisting anything that the opposition proposes once the proposal does not find favour with the government. There is no middle ground.
In this day and age, for leaders to be playing a game of tit for tat, and for them to be opposing for the sake of opposition, will not do the country any good. Therefore for the sake of the nation perhaps we should head back to the polls.

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