Coalition Government, National Sovereignty and Building a Culture of Consensus

Oct 16, 2015 Letters

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Dear Editor,
The brand of adversarial politics that Guyana has grown accustomed to over the past 60 years or so, has created the mindset among our people that opposition parties are destined to oppose every iota of policies proposed by the Government of the day.  Every speech, every overseas trip, every policy proposal, development project or negotiated settlement is viewed with grave suspicion. This creates a reciprocation of mistrust, where successive governments have returned the favor by conducting the people’s business in clouds of secrecy. Policies conceived in a shroud of opacity naturally breathe corruption, nepotism and cabalism. To achieve the required level of policy obfuscation, it becomes a necessity to keep the information circle tight; tight more often means small. A small group of trusted lieutenants may naturally be drawn from among close friends, family and political comrades. The insider-outsider theory put forth by economists Assar Lindbeck and Dennis Snower can be applied to this form of cabalistic politics; if you are a member of the inner-circle and play by the rules of surreptitiousness, then you earn lifetime insulated membership, while those on the outside must be kept out at all cost. This type of insulation unsurprisingly breathes an incestuous culture where wrong doers are not punished, simply because they are a part of the in-crowd.
The unique nature of Guyana’s (pre-election) 2015 coalition government offers a tangible opportunity to break the cyclic culture of cabal and insider-outsider politics. Diving into uncharted Bermuda Triangle type waters to craft a pre-election accord, develop a unified election strategy, execute a multi-party election campaign and win government (in a matter of a few weeks) is a mammoth achievement unprecedented in local and Caribbean politics. To avoid squandering the gains made so far, the multi-party APNU+AFC is made to (of necessity) develop a culture of consensus building under an open accord that bear rigorous public scrutiny. It is hoped that this represents a new political paradigm in Guyana. For this to be effective, each constituent of the coalition must retain their individuality, especially among the larger parties to the accord. There must be a distinct AFC, WPA and PNC, there should be no attempt to mask their distinctiveness, otherwise we run the risk of losing the gains we have made and slip right back into cabalism, a style of government mechanism that has isolated, victimized and suppressed so many other stakeholders. Larger coalition members should not attempt to dilute the influence of their smaller counterparts, Guyana is better off if we rule through a process of consensus building in favor of railroading. It affords us the opportunity to strengthen the negotiating capacities of the Guyanese political cadre, which can only redound to our benefit in the international arena.
The APNU+AFC coalition government, given the little experience we have so far, seems to lend itself to a greater degree of transparency and consensus, giving rise to the conclusion that, given our bitter past of ethnic insecurity, a multiparty government is best suited for Guyana. An important ingredient in coalition formation is convergence around shared values or objectives, as such, coalitions are valid only to the extent by which they have a working accord derived out of shared interests. It is therefore not a strange phenomenon for a coalition to be formed around a single issue.
This brings us to the PPPC. Like them or hate them, they are an entrenched part of the Guyanese political landscape and cannot just be wished away, with just about 49% of the valid votes cast at the 2015 elections they ought to be considered a partner in the governance apparatus of Guyana. Therefore, any genuine attempts to build consensus should gain the PPPC a seat at the table, notwithstanding their low morale and initial resistance. There is at least one common objective around which all parties have agreed; the reverberating refrain “Not a Blade of Grass.”
The Venezuelan incursion threat is real and has the potential to set back our development by more than 20 years. It is opportune for Guyana to have a formal All-party Parliamentary Coalition, albeit, around a single issue, that is, to repel the Caracas edict. If nothing else, this should get the Government and the opposition on speaking terms, to give the government the highest degree of political legitimacy and present a collective national identity. There should be an All-party Accord leading to a menu of national counter-measures born out of Government-Opposition consensus. To help Guyana make perhaps its most powerful international statement, this proposed pact should contemplate a confidence vote, when Parliament resumes, that should be led by no lesser person than the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly. Essentially this is a vote of confidence in the Grand Coalition Government (APNU+AFC+PPP) to stand together against Venezuelan aggression. A by-product of building consensus around this singular issue may be to diminish internal political strife and perhaps set a tone for future consensus on other issues to which the parties may have shared objectives. Guyana needs all its political forces on the same stage to swell the cry against this unneighbourly intrusion of our economic and national sovereignty and our right to self-determination. To build and maintain a culture of internal consensus will remain one of the most effective diplomatic armour to successfully neutralize any threat to our national sovereignty and no effort should be spared in its pursuit.
Leonno Craig

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