Charge Jagdeo with abuse of power

Dec 12, 2015 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

---

Bharrat Jagdeo held his usual weekly press conference and declared that both he and the PPP are credible entities that the Guyanese people want to see return to power. If any Guyanese lacks the moral substance to govern even a village, it is Jagdeo.
At that press meeting, Jagdeo uttered the most asinine statement to come out of the mouth of a Guyanese politician.  Mr. Jagdeo is contending that the amendment to the Former Presidents (Benefits and Other Facilities) Act is unconstitutional. He has filed a writ in court with the other plaintiff being his side-kick, Donald Ramotar. Here is where the asininity comes in. If the amendment to a law is unconstitutional, it follows logically then, that the law itself cannot be scrapped.
But there is a crucial question to be asked. If the amendment is unconstitutional, why isn’t the law itself unconstitutional? Essentially, here is what this comical duo is saying – when we were in government we had legal authority to enact laws but you, APNU-AFC, cannot amend the Bills we passed. It has to be a laughable act that the legislation passed by the previous government stands, but the present administration cannot alter or abolish laws they came and met, and that they find have outlived their usefulness.
According to the logics of Jagdeo then, the present Parliament cannot amend the 1987 Narcotics Act. It means then, that the present Council of the University of Guyana will remain flawed, because it will be unconstitutional if the APNU-AFC coalition regime amends the University of Guyana Act. The 1995 change to the University of Guyana Act, allows for a certain type of shape for the Council of the University. A Council member has to come from the following:- legal profession, medical profession, women groups, Amerindians, the ruling party, the opposition in Parliament, trade union movement, business community, farmer associations.
That amendment is palpable nonsense and should be removed. Why not the media community, churches, army, police, engineers’ association, nurses’ association? Why farmers, doctors, lawyers and not the media and youth representation? What is wrong with a seat on the Council for high level officers from the police and army? So it is possible that the University Act could be amended? Would it be unconstitutional to do so? Of course it is not. But what Jagdeo and Ramotar are doing is playing to the PPP gallery.
Jagdeo and Ramotar know the Benefits Act could be amended. Jagdeo as President ordered changes to the Fiscal Amendment Act and made them retroactive to cover himself after concessions were given to Bobby Ramroop that were illegal, and for which Yesu Persaud was insulted when he publicly pointed to that perversity at the official opening of the Guyana Times newspaper. Jagdeo knows that any law can be amended, even the constitution of a country. The US Constitution has been amended several times.
What Jagdeo is doing at his weekly press conference is the perpetuation of a banality which is a worn-out strategy and which Clement Rohee has perfected – remain pugilistic and your supporters will rally behind you. It doesn’t matter how absurd is the context of the aggression. The point is to stay fierce and confrontational.
What is taking place in Guyana with opposition politics is the theatre of the absurd and macabre. The entire PPP leadership is prepared to denounce any and everything APNU-AFC does and barefacedly ignore Jagdeo’s twelve-year-old stable of unimaginable power madness. It has to do this to let its supporters know the party is still alive.
But there is a method to counter the PPP’s banality of strategy and their strategy of banality – arrest Jagdeo and others for criminal abuse of power. The Caribbean has a precedent for that in a recent judgement in the Caribbean Court of Justice, with a case study from Belize. Former rulers can be held accountable for the abuse of power. Guyana should now emulate Belize.
The Pradoville 2 illegality is so waterproof that citizens must wonder why after eight months in power, there is no discernible movement in that direction, except the courageous emanations of one of Guyana’s great icons – Clive Thomas.
The PPP leadership knows it committed unimaginable violations. Jagdeo is lying about the press knowing about the cancellation of the Ed Ahmad land deal on Thomas Road. It was never mentioned by any media house. Let Jagdeo publish the citation. He cannot. The PPP cabals know what they gave away, what they sold and took money in return for, about the drug connections and drug protections, and the sadistic politics of incestuousness, discrimination and oppression.

---

---