The November 28 elections came and went without too much fuss or fanfare. OK, so there was some post-elections muscle-flexing and talk of boycotting businesses but the only business who that appeared to have been visibly affected by the boycott was the Kashif & Shanghai Tournament. The crowds were definitely down, particularly, we are told in Linden. Both Kashif and Shanghai are Lindeners and that must have been a bitter pill for them to swallow.
Still, Guyana grinds on, the most significant change being Mr. Jagdeo’s exit from centre stage. Earliest impressions of the new President? Well, if the truth be told there is really not much to go on. Same Cabinet… more or less and frankly, up until now there does not appear to be much of an effort being made to promote Mr Ramotar’s presidential side. True, he’s been reported in the news but one does not get the impression that he is being made to say anything particularly profound, anything, that is, that smacks of a different agenda. Mind you, Mr Ramotar did say in a newspaper interview some time before the elections that he can’t be separated from the PPP… so that, presumably, we shouldn’t expect too much of a change. On the other hand he might grow into the job… let’s give him and few months or so and see if the worm turns.
By far the biggest thing about the elections was the outcome… well not so much the outcome but the fact, first of all, that Vishnu Bisram appeared to have gotten it wrong in terms of the NACTA prediction of an outright win. We have a hung parliament for the first time in our history and that is what people have zeroed in on most.
And why not? It could change so many things. One awaits with bated breath the writings of the political scientists on the political significance of a hung parliament for the country’s future. Are we edging closer to shared governance or was November 28 just an aberration?
What is apparent is that there is a genuine desire among Guyanese for a more combative political culture. The problem with our democracy is that it has always been measured purely in terms of how free and fair the elections have been and even though some Observer Groups did have things to say about the fairness of the poll it got a pass mark anyway. But then our democracy has always been hobbled by the fact that in the past whoever won got the whole nine yards, the Executive and the Legislature and that definitely made our National Assembly look like a bit of a farce.
Here are a few things to consider. Few people might have observed that the PNC (AS AN INDIVIDUAL POLITICAL PARTY) now has fewer seats in the Parliament than it previously had. It’s true. Last time around the PNC had 22 seats in parliament. This time its two less; 20. Check it out if you don’t believe. The remaining six seats went to the rest of the coalition.. in some cases, deserving or otherwise. Piggybacking pays.
We know too that at least one development has arisen out of this HUNG PARLIAMENT situation; it would not have been this complicated if a single party had had an overall majority in Parliament. But let it be that way. For far too long our politics has had as much juice in it as a burnt hamburger. Things should SPICE UP now. Let them wrangle and tangle and wage as much verbal war as they want. That’s what democratic politics is all about? We have been getting away with a so-called democracy for too many years. Let the budget debate be meaningful! Let the bills get sent back to Parliamentary Committees! Let the MPs on the various sides of the house go into late night huddles to work things out. At least the media will now be compelled to understand the workings of parliament better and more politicians will make the news!
Now this business of one-time PNC General Secretary Aubrey Norton being excluded from the PNC’s list has actually become a serious issue for APNU. NCN says it’s really Corbin vs. Granger, but then NCN has an axe to grind. We are told that the real truth is that after the spoils were divided there was simply no room for Norton at the Inn. What a great pity. Truth is, Norton is now one of the Last of the Mohicans, a throwback to the ‘good old days’ of the PNC. There are those who feel that his experience would have counted.
But the real issue is how our new democracy will work. Will the members of the National Assembly make better presentations or will Parliament continue to be a Sleeping Chamber when certain members take the floor? After all there are some parliamentarians who couldn’t make a proper presentation to save their lives.
