No-confidence motion and related matters... Be prepared for the implications of the example being set

No-confidence motion and related matters… Be prepared for the implications of the example being set – Ramson tells Government

Feb 17, 2019 News

Attorney-at-law, Charles Ramson, is reminding the government of the old adage, “You cannot have your cake and eat it too.”
He said that the very positions that Government members are holding on to are created and catered for in the constitution. Ramson said that, therefore, the President and his Ministers cannot now decide to ignore other provisions of the same constitution that gives life to their positions.
Also, the Attorney is telling the government to be weary of the signal it is sending to the masses through its “illegal and unconstitutional” hold on power.
Speaking about the government’s “disregard for the constitution”, Ramson said that the same constitution that caters for an executive also caters for the legislative and the judicial arms of the State.
Ramson noted that the constitution gives the legislative branch the power to remove a government through a vote of no-confidence.

Attorney-at-Law, Charles Ramson

He said, “That very constitution states that if the government loses, there must be election within three months unless otherwise agreed to by the President and the Leader of the Opposition.”
The lawyer continued, “The government lost a vote of confidence on the 21st December, 2018, which means that unless agreed by the President and the Leader of the Opposition our election is due by the 21st March, 2019.
“It cannot be that the very offices you hold whether as President, minister and at the Guyana Elections Commission were created by the Constitution on the one hand but you refuse to comply with the directives in the Constitution. You cannot have your cake and eat it, too.”

LAWLESSNESS AND ANARCHY
Ramson said that there is a serious danger to be suffered by Guyana when the masses are given the impression that the highest office holders have no regard for the law or constitution.
He said, “By not setting an election date already, the government is sending the signal that it is not prepared to comply with our supreme law. The unintended consequence is that it sends the signal that everyone can disregard, disrespect and disobey the Constitution.”
The Attorney said, “Persons may want to follow their leaders, and if the leaders are acting on their own accord then the masses may do the same. We may be heading towards widespread disregard for the rules that govern our nation.
“The President needs to meet with the Leader of the Opposition immediately to set a date for an election and that date cannot be governed only by GECOM’s readiness because according to Article 162, GECOM is also required to comply with the 21st March election date.”

CHARGED AND SUED
Ramson said that unless the date is extended by agreement between the President and the Leader of the Opposition, Government ministers—including the Prime Minister—would have opened themselves to being charged criminally.
Further, Ramson stated, “After the 21st March, Ministers would have also opened themselves up for civil recovery proceedings for the receipt of any state monies, which includes salaries.
“I hope good sense prevails and the President meets with the Leader of the Opposition immediately to set an election date to avoid this totally lawless and unacceptable state of affairs from transpiring.”