Who said politics is a fair game

Nov 16, 2014 News

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By Ralph Seeram

No doubt, most of us have read the outpouring from the opposition parties and from groups and the social media how the PPP has descended into a dictatorship, President Donald Ramotar a dictator and the death of democracy in Guyana.
In all of this I am left to wonder how these events have affected the ordinary man in the street. Does it make a difference in his everyday routine? Does it really affect his work, his wages, his bills?  Really, does it make a difference to the ordinary hard working Guyanese man or woman?
Many years ago when I worked in Wall Street, the office had a heated discussion on who should be the next President of the United States, when my supervisor called me aside and said, “Ralph it does not matter who is President? You still have to catch the train to come to work; you still have to pay your bills and taxes.”
So I ask, what difference does it make the man in the street? Would it motivate them to come out in thousands to protest against the government? I doubt it very much. I am predicting that the opposition will not get the number they expect to come out and support “peaceful” demonstration; we know how “peaceful” these opposition protests were in the past.
Let’s examine this prorogation issue. I am going to go down a road that will not find favour with opposition supporters, but let’s separate the facts from propaganda.
Did President Ramotar break any laws? The President merely used the powers granted to him under the constitution. APNU and the AFC were using the same powers granted to them under the constitution to bring down the PPP Government, and there was nothing wrong with that. It was their right, but “push gat push back”.
Did they really think the PPP Government will just lie down meekly and let them walk over them, if they thought so and they apparently did, then they are amateurs at politics. Remember Power, Position and Privilege nobody gives up easily. APNU and AFC should have known they were entering a political battle, which apparently they were not prepared for.
The opposition was using the constitution to bring down the government; the PPP Government used the same constitution to keep itself in power, nothing non democratic they used the very Constitution the opposition was using. Nobody said politics is a fair game. In fact, it’s a dirty game; there is no loyalty or honor in politics, or as some would say “politrix”.  The opposition got beaten at their game.
The opposition had a plan A but no plan B. The PPP had plan A, B and a C. Why would the opposition think it would have been a “cake walk” in Parliament?
If the no confidence vote was passed, the Government still had three months to be in power, to run the state of affairs until the elections which had to be held within the three months period. There would have been no parliament. Now the prorogation only gives the government an extra three months if it decides to stretch it that far before elections.
What would the opposition have achieved given those three months that it could not achieve in three years? While we are on the subject, can you think of anything significant the AFC and APNU achieved with their majority status in Parliament? So all this nonsense of dictatorship is sheer hogwash; it’s just political gamesmanship being played out by politicians.
By the way this newspaper Kaieteur News has done more for the Guyanese public than the combined opposition in parliament.
In the political arena the opposition is no match for the PPP; it was out maneuvered by the PPP. We should ask ourselves if the ill conceived no confidence motion was passed how it would have benefitted the nation.
For the PPP, at best it would have won back a majority in Parliament; at worse it would have won back the Presidency. What was in it for APNU and AFC? At best they would have retained majority in parliament, at worse they could have lost their one seat majority. The opposition stood more to lose than the PPP in an election, so I can’t fathom why they would have wanted to go back to the polls. Anyway general elections will be held within six months anyway, and this time the PPP will be ready. Question is, will the opposition ready, I think they are secretly happy the government gave them an extra three months to prepare.
The downside for the PPP in this prorogation issue is its International image, being painted as a dictatorship. For APNU it is in a no win situation. If it dos not protest they will appear weak; if it stages street protests, it can energize PPP supporters, especially if there is violence.
One cannot help but “read through the lines” their appeal to the Army and Police Chief not to let their forces engage “in unlawful actions against law abiding citizens”. What the opposition needs to address is to ensure its supporters do not engage in “unlawful actions” to cause the joint forces to engage in “lawful” actions.
While we are on the subject of unlawful actions, is somebody going to pay the penalty for the malicious prosecution of the three former NBS managers Messrs Arjoon, Vincent and Baldeo, who have been vindicated by the courts and now the Ombudsman’s report?
Will the DPP face any sanctions for this sordid affair given her connections to the principals in the conspiracy to fire these men?
In the US, prosecutors are sanctioned or debarred if found guilty for ethical violations. Could this happen to political “hacks: in Guyana? Just asking. I would hope the courts do justice to these men and grant them the financial compensation they are due plus monetary award for the damage to their reputation. Here again we see the fingerprints of Bharrat Jagdeo. As they say “karma is a bitch” what goes around comes around. Finally something honest has come out of Guyana. I urge people to read the report.
Ralph Seeram can be reached at email: [email protected] and Facebook

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