Dear Editor,
Confidence in Government was lost on December 21, 2018. The No-Confidence Motion (NCM) should be given its full effect under the law.
The people have a right to replace their Government, which is merely their servant. Neither Government nor any third party (e.g. GECOM) has the authority to obstruct the full effect of the NCM.
Yet, Government continues to do everything to deny the NCM its full legal effect. This includes the call for house-to-house registration which is not an Article 106 (6) and (7) requirement to install a new Government.
A new Government must be installed immediately to avoid further exposure of the State to both foreign and domestic threats. Having a fallen Government at the helm of the State puts Guyana’s security and general welfare at significant risk.
This is the essence of a NCM which seems to have gotten lost with all the unnecessary talk of registration. The security of the State is paramount, and it trumps the so-called readiness of GECOM.
Having the fallen Granger Administration at the helm of Guyana invites instability. The arrival of thousands of Haitians is a recipe for further internal upheaval. Until a new and stable Government is installed, these arrivals should temporarily cease.
In the interim, civil society and the media must continue to put pressure on both Government and the Opposition to ensure that the NCM is given its full legal effect.
As it is, Government’s actions have created irreparable injury to the State and democracy, and may have destroyed future use of the NCM as a parliamentary convention. It is now fashionable to disregard substantive constitutional law. Here are few examples.
1. Instead of fresh elections “within three months” the President replaced that in Article 106 (6) and (7) with elections in the “shortest” time possible. He has “hammered out” new law without any “role” from the legislature. No one knows what his law means.
2. The formal detailed request by the Leader of the Opposition for the President and Cabinet to resign is cast aside with a handful of words: the request is being “examined.” Waiting for the President and Cabinet to resign is like waiting for Godot. That is, waiting for someone who never shows up.
3. The Hon. Minister of Public Security contradicts the President and is blunter. He openly dismissed that part of the Constitution which requires resignations as “legal fiction.” In other words, it is not a real request. Maybe the law needs to be in boldface font.
It is a testing time to be a diplomat in Guyana, to witness Coalition-flavoured democracy. Diplomats with vested interests in Guyana must be gravely concerned about the clear and present dangers posed by this Coalition regime.
They should also pressure state actors to give the NCM its full effect under the law.
Yours faithfully,
Rakesh Rampertab
