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PEOPLE ARE LIVID, BUT FOR WHAT!
It seems that many Guyanese at home and in the diaspora are livid over the unilateral appointment of 84 year- old retired Justice James Patterson as the chairman of Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) by President Granger. 
While the leader of the opposition and some of its regional councils have declared war on the Granger administration, the AFC led by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and its Chairman and Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan have fully supported the President’s decision. Whether it is due to cabinet solidarity or not, given the embodiment of the coalition government, one should not expect anything different from the AFC.
That said, many believe that the wider-public has every right to be upset with the President because of his unorthodox and awkward style of governance.
It seems that some members of the present administration are putting their interests ahead of the country. Many are prone to make costly mistakes because of their lack of experience and their refusal to listen to advisers or their inability to understand and comprehend issues.
The question on the minds of many Guyanese is: Why would the President allow the leader of the opposition to submit three lists of 18 names when he knew that he would not accept any of the candidates because of his distrust of Jagdeo and his practice of politics? And why would the opposition leader believe that he could goad the President to choose a candidate when he knew it would not happen.
While Mr. Jagdeo has made the age of the chairman an issue, yet he placed 82 year-old Norman McLean’s name at the top of his list.
And it looks as though his memory is indeed failing him because Cheddi Jagan died in office at age 79, and his wife, Janet demitted office in 1999 and the same age. To mention the age of James Patterson is one thing, but to be hypocritical is being deceitful.
Most Guyanese, including supporters of the PPP are aware that as President, Jagdeo has on most occasions acted in his own self-interest and those of his friends and relatives and not in the interest of the country or the people.
One just has to look at the contract he gave to his friend to purchase the nation’s drugs, the secret financing of the Berbice Bridge and the Marriott Hotel, the giving away of the airwaves to his relatives, friends and his party, the parceling out of the nation’s best ocean front lands to himself and his PPP clique. Not to mention his reckless use of NICIL as a vehicle to squander the taxpayers’ money.
There is another dimension to the President’s decision. He may have erred and should be criticized for his action, but the PPP should also be blamed for its inaction. But like everything else, our politicians have and continue to look for advice from foreigners, most of whom do not understand the political culture of Guyana.
The truth is the Carter Formula is flawed and the PPP government had 23 years to correct it, but did nothing.This reminds us of the 1980 constitution which the PPP had relentlessly criticized for giving the president too much power. But while in office, the PPP government did absolutely nothing to reduce those powers.
In fact, the Jagdeo/Ramotar regime used the constitution to their advantage. And no one is more contemptuous of the constitution and the laws of Guyana than Mrs. Janet Jagan who had tossed a writ issued by a judge over her shoulders.
So for the opposition leader and his cabal to say that the unilateral appointment of GECOM chairman by the president is unconstitutional and that it threatened our democracy is foolhardy.
Mr. Jagdeo should look at himself in the mirror and acknowledge that he was pathetic as president and should stop his race-bait politics. We are in a new era and the nation’s interests should take preference over his and his party.
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