The art of evasion

Aug 31, 2014 APNU Column, Features / Columnists

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President Donald Ramotar, every time he speaks about local government elections, manages to convey the impression of evasiveness. He was much more positive as Presidential Candidate of the People’s Progressive Party Civic – PPPC. Once in office, however, vagueness took the place of clearness.
Ramotar made what many thought was a solemn promise in his party’s election Manifesto – Working Together for a Better Tomorrow. He wrote: “In the area of local government and governance, the next PPPC government will ensure, within one year of the 2011 general elections, that local government elections are held, bringing much needed reinvigoration into local government entities.” What could be clearer?
Nearly three years have passed since elections were held and Ramotar became president. He has failed to keep his promise on local government election. Can he be relied on to keep his promises on anything at all?
Ramotar, during his nearly three-year tenure of office, has given licence to his ministers of Local Government and Regional Development to destroy numerous local democratic councils, although not without resistance. Residents are resentful of the PPPC’s brutishness. They staged protests at the Corriverton municipality and the Ireng-Sawariwau, Port Kaituma-Arakaka, Mathew’s Ridge and Kwakwani and other neighbourhoods against PPPC-installed, hand-picked interim management committees.
The PPPC for over two decades has demonstrated its unwillingness to introduce Local Government reform, which is necessary to give effect to Article 12 of the Guyana Constitution. This states: “Local Government by freely elected representatives of the people is an integral part of the democratic organisation of the State.” This is what is at stake.
Ramotar’s record of evasiveness on the critical issue of local government elections is an open book for all to read. As PPP General Secretary in 2010, he expressed his willingness “…to have Local Government elections under the old system.” He added, “…reforms could be worked on and introduced when completed”. Ramotar’s clear intention at that time was to maintain the ‘old’ system. There is abundant evidence of Ramotar’s continuing resistance to ‘new’ democracy.
Ramotar should recall that, as a member of the National Assembly, his party used its majority to delay reforms. Contrived delays made it necessary to repeatedly pass amendments for twelve consecutive years since 1997 to defer the holding of Local Government Elections. The expressed purpose was: “completing the reform of the Local Government System in Guyana as required by the Guyana Constitution.” The reforms have now been drafted, but the PPPC’s resistance has been renewed.
Ramotar, as President, has displayed gross disrespect for the National Assembly by refusing to assent to the Local Government (Amendment) Bill which had been passed by the National Assembly along with the Municipal and District Councils (Amendment) Bill, the Local Government Commission Bill and the Fiscal Transfers Bill. These had all been scrutinised by the Parliamentary Select Committee on Local Government before passage.
Ramotar also ignored the Local Authorities (Elections) (Amendment) Bill 2013 which states that elections must be held on or before August 1, 2014. The bill was amended by A Partnership for National Unity in the National Assembly to enable the conduct of Local Government Elections on or before that date.
Ramotar, back in March this year when asked when the PPPC administration planned to hold local government elections, said: “Well that is not yet decided. When we decide I’ll let you know.” Three months later, in June, Ramotar misleadingly remarked: “I too would love to have local government elections as early as possible. There is no resistance on my part…” He added confusingly: “…We are ready to have it. We are always ready to have local government elections.” The next month, in July, he again evaded the issue. He said: “Cheddi Jagan would have loved to have the elections periodically and on time. So would I and so would the PPP.”
Ramotar rejected explicit calls last year from the Ambassadors and High Commissioners of the USA, UK, Canada and the European Union for the holding of local government elections. They had stated, jointly: “Given the important and pressing need for effective local governance, we believe that 2013 should be a watershed moment for the people of Guyana – the year they can once again democratically elect their local government…the institutions and practice of local governance have withered on the vine.” Ramotar’s obscure response was: “I don’t know what motivated them to do that…I have my own views on that.”
Ramotar, in June this year under continuing pressure from the diplomatic community over his failure to call local government elections, responded: “I do not agree with this idea that the lack of local government elections was undermining democracy… what undermines democracy is when you listen to everybody’s telephone calls and read their emails and ban them from having collective bargaining in their own country in different parts of North America and Europe.” What on earth did that have to do with local government elections in Sawariwau?
Ramotar’s procrastination has been exposed by the Chairman of the Elections Commission. Given the passage in the National Assembly of the Local Authorities (Election Amendment) Bill which had provided for local government elections to be held by August, the Chairman announced in March that the Elections Commission was ready to “go into election mode” as soon as the date for local government elections is fixed.
Ramotar is ably carrying on the PPPC’s tradition of evasion of democratic reform and local government elections. The PPPC is content with the ‘old’ system under which its ministers could remove elected councils and impose hand-picked placemen. This is the reason that there is so much chaos in municipalities and neighbourhoods. Ramotar’s administration is deliberately undermining democratically-elected local councils and inhibiting their development in order to maintain total control of the councils.

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