Government has now usurped power and occupies office illegally

Mar 27, 2019 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,

The overpowering stench and corruption in the ethnically divisive politics of my native land spanning a period of seven decades has emasculated its citizenry of their economic and human rights. Yet this remains a carefully guarded national secret as neither of the two major ethnic parties will admit this established and proven fact.
The coalition government comprising mainly of the People’s National Congress, The Alliance for Change and the Working People’s Alliance has lost its coat of convenience and only the People’s National Congress remains as a political organisation within the Coalition with solid ethnic support mainly among Guyanese of African descent.
Coalition is a temporary alliance of political parties and since both the Alliance For Change and the Working People’s Alliance have no political support, the People’s National Congress has irretrievably shed its cover as a disguise, which it ardently sought based on its history.
The argument proposed by the Government of Guyana regarding what constitutes a majority in the no-confidence motion is simply nonsensical and contains a deeply inherent flaw. Yet the current unlawful government continues to squander the nation’s revenues without any accountability defending their unreasonable, ridiculous and unlawful attempt to extend their political life in office.
The Guyana Court of Appeal’s decision regarding what constitutes a majority is erroneous in law and even though it is in effect binding until overturned by a superior court, it ought not to be respected. Inevitably, The Caribbean Court of Justice will simply overturn this decision or risk its own reputation and legal competence not excluding the careful consideration of the legal calibre and ethnicity of the seven judges who sit at its judicial table.
There is no constitutional crisis in the nation as the Guyana Constitution is the product of an unlawful referendum in 1978 and written by the late Dr. Mohamed Shahabudeen under the explicit instructions of the late Forbes Burnham. A living legal document cannot derive its power and have as its origins an unlawful source and yet both the People’s National Congress and the People’s Progressive Party unequivocally support this unlawful document and animatedly make reference to it as the nation’s constitution.
What makes the current Government of Guyana illegal is not based on the provisions of the illegal 1978 Burnham constitution.
Its status of illegality is borne on the basis that a majority of Members of Parliament have voted against it in a motion put forward by the opposition and the ninety days period in which to name an election date is reasonable and consistent with political conventions and actions in the civilized world. More importantly, the ninety days is not only adequate given local circumstances and conditions, but the Government was provided with more than reasonable notice and time in which to call an election.
The Government of Guyana has chosen its own inexplicable conduct and courses of action not excluding the irresponsible positions advocated by the Guyana Elections Commission.
Guyana’s political history spanning seven decades of government and opposition of the People’s National Congress and the People’s Progressive Party has seen the nation tumbled from the top of the Caribbean steadily downwards. The economic cost to the nation of these two political pariahs measures eighty percent of its gross domestic product and its per capita income. In other words, Guyanese families are only earning today 20% of what they would have earned had the nation acquired responsible governance.
In human terms, the nation has lost in excess of one hundred percent of its population, in that period, which resides relatively comfortably outside its national borders.
In actual nominal and local dollars, a nuclear family with both parents working is losing, on average, approx. $460,000.00 per month.
This is the unbearably high and gradually accumulated cost that has been borne on the backs of Guyanese families for what appears now to be three decades short of one hundred years. The parameters of the continuity of this perennial human crisis resulting from irresponsible governance is driven on the adamant refusal of either of these two political vampires to completely submit to the strict requirements of the Rule of Law and implementing policies and actions in the interests of the Guyanese nation as opposed to their own individual interests.
By having these two ethnically supported political forces at the helm of their nation, whether by choice or powered by the loathing of the other ethnic side, makes it extremely difficult for the emergence of a viable third political force.
Inevitably and quite soon, an election will be held and based on this entrenched political power model, these two political vampires are likely to be returned as the government and the opposition as ninety percent of the nation’s electorate will accordingly endorse their support.
In plain and simple terms, Guyanese of African descent will vote for the People’s National Congress and Guyanese of East Indian descent will vote for the People’s Progressive Party.

Kris Kooblall
Toronto, Canada

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