Dear Editor,
As reported by SN of Friday 21 June, 2019, the new political party ‘A New and United Guyana (ANUG)’ set out its vision for the future governance of the country at a press conference held the day before.
Among its declarations ANUG’s main concern appears to be the following:
“Without ANUG either one or the other (PPP/C, APNU/AFC) will win the elections and take a majority in Parliament.”
As a consequence therefore the following are some of ANUG’s expressed perspectives:
a) ‘a Presidential System and Government in which all the major political parties will serve.’
The question is invited as to whether ANUG can be considered a major political party as of now.
b) ‘the complete separation of powers between the Executive and the Legislative.’
Hopefully, there will be more specificity in the very near future as to how this separation will be effected, and which players will be involved.
c) ‘a constituency system with a mechanism for proportionality.’
Detailed clarity about the foregoing can also be reasonably anticipated.
d) ‘a complete makeover of the political system which Guyana deserves.’
Once more who will be the authors of this fundamental restructuring? Given the current climate of disconnection, can it reasonably be expected that the leading contending parties will concede to any local intervention regarding ‘a complete makeover’ without a well-coordinated demand from across a wide spectrum of citizenship?
e) ‘ethnic insecurity, discrimination and marginalisation will be eliminated.’
Given our history of related constipation, what time frame is being envisaged for this movement, which arguably, should precede the ‘complete makeover’? Who will be the ‘eliminators’?
f) ‘ANUG’s offer is not to challenge or defy the ethnopolitical will of the people of Guyana, but to create a system where both parties (?) share the Government.’
To some this ‘offer’ might appear too concessionary. Certainly the intervention as concerned will need considerable determination by ANUG to act as power-broker in achieving the stated objective.
However, ANUG later changed its preceding position as a middle-man somewhat; and has become more assertive by setting out the following:
i) ‘ANUG has entered the political arena to win the elections…. If we obtain a majority or plurality of votes, we will invite the other parties (numbers unclear) in a national unity government and will immediately embark on constitutional reform.’
This is a good thing (however realistic). ANUG should therefore demand that the current major parties publicly commit to:
– National unity
– Constitutional reform
So that hopefully the voters would be able to evaluate the respective responses.
ii) ‘If we are unable to persuade the Guyanese people to give us an absolute majority or plurality, we hope to obtain enough seats in the National Assembly to ensure that neither party (PPP/C, APNU/AFC) obtain an absolute majority.’
On review of the foregoing, one cannot help but detect more than a hint of equivocation about ANUG’s major objective.
In the first instance the reason one competes in any race is to win. ANUG must therefore set out to let citizens know that it plans to engage all ethnicities; that the party is the only one capable of forging national unity; as well as the only one who could lead the new governance team in forging the critical constitutional reform.
ANUG must understand that it can only lead from in front. It will have to be much more aggressive, and plan to meet target groups not only to articulate its objectives, but to also have them scrutinised and evaluated for practicality in the first instance.
The conversations would need to be most comprehensive, but for certain the fundamental weakness that is the ‘ethnopolitical’ quagmire in which our society is sunk must be addressed with a passion. We simply cannot endure anymore.
Our young generations deserve better.
Yours faithfully
E.B. John
