Dear Editor,
Your editorial (Sunday, April 10) under the caption ‘Consensus’ demonstrated a clear bias against the PPP and its internal democratic processes with particular reference to the manner in which the party has identified its presidential candidate. The impression conveyed by the editorial is that the decision-making processes of the party are flawed and not in keeping with the norms of modern democratic practices.
Such perceptions reflect a lack of knowledge of the way the party conducts its election to political office, which is fundamentally democratic and not an imposition on the membership by those in positions of authority. The fact that contestants chose to opt out of an election process freely and voluntarily does not in any way diminish the value of democracy or the democratic processes. On the contrary, it speaks to a level of maturity where party members vying for office voluntarily agreed to subordinate their individual aspirations to the collective good of the organization.
Consensus, I wish to submit, is not an evil as your editorial seems to suggest. On the contrary, it represents an ideal state which not many organizations could easily arrive at, as in the case of the PNC and to a lesser extent the AFC.
The fact that the PPP managed to arrive at a consensus in the selection of Mr Donald Ramotar as its presidential candidate is commendable and ought not to be frowned upon as your editorial sought to do.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
