President Ramotar must respect the Constitution, the National Assembly and the people of Guyana

Stabroek News has invited the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance for Change to submit a weekly column on local government and related matters. The PPP/C has declined the offer. Only APNU has submitted a column this week.

Brigadier David Granger, Leader of the Opposition, wrote to President Donald Ramotar on September 9, 2014 reminding him of his duty to respect the Constitution, to respect the decisions of the National Assembly and to respect the promises the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) made in relation to the holding of local government elections (LGE).

Granger called on Ramotar specifically to effect three things, one of these being to ‘initiate a process by which the Local Government (Amendment) Bill could be returned for (his) assent.’ The President’s non-assent to the Bill which was passed unanimously in the National Assembly on August 7, 2013 should not be misunderstood. Notice of non-assent to this Bill came