Power holders love power, will never share it

Oct 24, 2019 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

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Guyanese have four months to decide how they are going to vote. Since 1957, only two parties have been in power with two occasions producing partnerships that didn’t diminish the overall control of the larger partner.
In 1964, the United Force formed a coalition with the PNC. It did not last long and after 1968, the PNC all by itself held power until October 1992. From October 1992 to May 2015, the PPP held undiminished control. It proclaimed a coalition with an opaque group the PPP itself named the Civic Component. Only a moran believed that in those long years in office the PPP had a coalition partner.
Since May 2015, the PNC has been in power with the Alliance For Change. But many political observers and analysts have argued that the power lies with the PNC. This columnist is of that belief. From 1957 to the present, there has been no dilution on the totality of power wielded by the PPP and the PNC.
The question is if the PPP or the PNC wins in March 2020, will there be any change as to how power was exercised since 1957. You cannot predict human behaviour. The PPP and the PNC could do the unthinkable and share real, legal constitutional power if either wins in 2020.
But even though such a possibility cannot be tossed aside, the probability of its happening is extremely weak. The historical balance sheet is not helpful and in fact is dismal. The West wanted to remove Burnham and began to undermine his rule from 1976. Jagan accepted that Burnham had converted to socialist economics and was sympathetic. He announced in 1976, the declaration of “Critical Support.” But there was no unity government.
When Hoyte succeeded Burnham, he reached out to the West and refused to have dialogue with any opposition party. The two Jagan presidents were happy to run Guyana through the PPP. After Jagdeo came to power, a violent crisis engulfed Guyana, the type that was never seen before. Between 2002-2007 violent gunmen operating from Buxton, virtually paralyzed the country. But there were no attempts at unity government.
Perhaps the most brazen example of how the PPP and PNC approach power lies in the minority presidency of Donald Ramotar after 2011. Faced with relentless pressure in parliament where the opposition parties had a majority of one seat, the AFC requested the implementation of the procurement commission in exchange for parliamentary support. Ramotar turned it down.
Ramotar to evade a no confidence vote called a general election in 2015 and lost to a unity slate of PNC and AFC. But from day one, AFC personnel felt that the PNC had the hog of state power. In 2017, so desirous of diminishing the PNC’s totality of authority, the AFC held a retreat at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre and ended its deliberation with the advocacy of reducing some of the many jurisdictions of the Ministry of the Presidency. The larger partner, the PNC did not agree and did not concede.
The question is why should voters trust the PPP and the PNC to win a majority and acquire a conscience and agree to decentralization and sharing of power? Do voters believe the metamorphosis will happen? If yes, where are the facts to support such a position? The lessons of history are that politicians do not by themselves tame the power they have at their control. If left to themselves, they will not concede an inch of it.
As I write this piece here only Mikhail Gorbachev comes to mind. I believe the examples of leaders readily agreeing to distribute state power to important stakeholders and other electoral contenders are so rare in history that I confess I can only think of Gorbachev in the now defunct USSR.
The best avenue for the sharing of power is through minority government. A minority administration does not have legal and parliamentary room to manoeuvre. It is precariously perched because of a lack of majority in the legislature. What happens then, smaller parties, if they are democratic in instincts, force them to pursue popular directions like salary increase, climate change, anti- homophobic legislation and constitutional reconstruction.
Canada has just voted in a minority government. In Israel none of the major parties want to institute a minority government because they feel the smaller parties can topple them at any moment. I cannot speak for the people of Guyana; I can only give my opinion. I see absolutely no indication that there will suddenly be a transformation from domination to Santa Claus if the PPP or PNC secures a majority in 2020.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper)

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