Minister of State Joseph Harmon yesterday insisted that there is nothing in the constitution that limits government’s ability to fully function and that it is functioning as normal.
Speaking at a post-Cabinet press briefing at the Ministry of the Presidency, Harmon said that there will be no disruption of government’s smooth functioning.
His statements followed questions on whether government has taken a decision to suspend the signing of major investment agreements until the resolution of the legal challenges to the no-confidence motion that was passed against it on December 21st.
Article 106 (6) of the constitution states, “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.” Article 106(7) adds, “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly determine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”
Although the passage of the motion is now the subject of legal challenges, opposition leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday again insisted that Cabinet should resign in light of the passage of the motion and government should assume a caretaker role to prepare for the holding of elections.
Harmon, however, yesterday reiterated that there is no provision in the constitution that “limits the exercise of the power of the government to do anything and in that regard the government will function in its normal capacity as a government.”
Asked if he expects that investors will be willing to enter into any agreements with government at this stage given what is happening, he responded, “I think the investors will be looking at what is taking place and recognise that there is a government and the government is functioning lawful and legally and will continue to do their business.”
With regards to the implementation of the budget, Harmon said that this has already started and he used the occasion to warn public service against trying to obstruct the process.
“It is an error if you are to accept that kind of advice [not to implement programmes]. The government’s programme continues and that it is in the interest of all that the programme is implemented and that the persons who are meant to implement this programme must recognise that they have a duty to the people of this country to act in an efficient manner and to have those programmes implemented,” he added.
‘Troubling’
Harmon yesterday also said that he has taken note of some “troubling” statements emanating from Jagdeo with regards to meeting held last week between the government and the opposition. He insisted that the joint statement issued after the meeting was a reflection of their respective positions and that nothing in the statement was “made up.”
Jagdeo at his press conference on Thursday refuted a claim that an agreement was reached with APNU+AFC administration for the legislature and the executive to function normally in the wake of the passage of the motion against government.
Harmon, however holds a different view. He said that four persons spent hours working on the statement inside of his office and that there was a lot of back and forth between the two sides before agreement was reached on the contents of the statement. “This is such a poignant moment that… for the public to see that in spite of whatever is happening outside, that government ministers and opposition members can actually sit and hammer out documents which are in the national interest and so I find it to be a little troubling that the statement attributed to the Leader of the Opposition to say that there are things that are there which were not agreed to. I read the statement and as I say to you …the last insertion in that statement was made by the Leader of the Opposition,” Harmon said.
Pressed further, the minister acknowledged that there were matters agreed to that were not included in the statement.
“…The expressed words and the implications of the meeting, when you put it all together, the intention that is created there is that this is what the parties will agree to. The parties will agree to tone down the rhetoric and certain things. There are some matters that didn’t make its way into the statement but there were agreements between the parties… For example, toning down the rhetoric to ensure that it does not create an impression abroad that Guyana is in a bad state. There were agreements but they were not agreements in writing but we agree that these were things that were necessary,” he noted.
Responding to the calls by Jagdeo for the government to resign, Harmon questioned what will happen if this is done.
“…What happens to the state? What happens to the government? What happens to the president, when in fact the said constitution says that the president shall be… the president until a new president is sworn in? So I think sometimes people pick and choose portions of the constitution to support their position and this is why I believe that constitutional education is so vital to Guyana,” he added.
Harmon also rubbished claims being made that the government was influencing the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to stall the start of elections preparations.
“This question of telling them what to do is a PPP mindset and it is a mindset which seeks to suggest that independent agencies can be dictated to… All the [Chief] Whips were asked to do was to make an inquiry into GECOM as to their operational readiness to deliver an election. They cannot tell GECOM how to do its work. We [government] cannot tell GECOM how to do its work,” he said.
At his press conference, Jagdeo had said that the commission has refused to meet with the Chief Whips.
The opposition believes, Jagdeo said, “that what is taking place is that the government is heavily influencing GECOM not to start the preparation for elections in 90 days.”
Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield, he claimed, has indicated to the Chief Whips that he cannot meet them because he has to get the approval of retired Justice James Patterson, GECOM’s Chairman, who in turn has to convene a statutory meeting to get that approval. “We have to decide at some point in time if we want to pursue this charade, or just withdraw from it totally,” he added.
