ANUG shines spotlight on constitutional reform

Oct 06, 2020 News

– as 28th anniversary of democracy is observed

Kaieteur News – On the 28th anniversary of the return of democracy in Guyana, the A New and United Guyana (ANUG) decided to remind the new administration of its commitment to constitutional reform and shared governance.
In a statement to the press yesterday, ANUG recalled that there were rigged elections in 1968, 1972, 1980 and 1985 and a rigged referendum in 1978. It reminded that the PPP/C won the elections on 5th October, 1992 promising shared governance or a ‘winner does not take all’ system of government.
However, the PPP/C remained in office for 23 years amidst an “unstable political system, punctuated by periodic violence and with economic growth unreflective of Guyana’s potential.”
“The electorate voted the PPP/C out of office in 2015,” ANUG wrote, “and placed its confidence in the APNU+AFC coalition to mend our political system by implementing a detailed plan for shared governance. They failed to do so and attempted unsuccessfully to rig the 2020 elections. Tensions once again exploded into ethnic violence after the brutal murder of the Henry cousins in West Coast Berbice. Tensions in several areas are still simmering.”
The party went on to say that there is an “inescapable” national consensus that is embraced by countries friendly to Guyana and that the time has come to implement a political system that is more responsive to Guyana’s conditions. ANUG, in the election campaign, advocated for an executive comprising the main political parties in equal numbers with a rotating president or chief executive and an independent parliament. “Both major political parties called for inclusive governance without specifying any measures that they proposed to implement,” it noted.
As the situation now stands, it would appear that the two main political parties are nowhere close to commencing discussions to resolve issues relating to Guyana’s constitutional and legal structures. As such, ANUG called on government “on this important anniversary to re-commit itself to shared governance and a ‘winner does not take all’ political system and to take steps to immediately implement a process of constitutional reform to bring this about.”

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