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.
The Stabroek News, beginning in early May 2014, featured daily on its front page, comments relating to the dire need to have the long-overdue local government elections (LGE). The comment on October 5, 2014 reads: “The only stakeholder not ready for local government elections is the PPP/C gov’t.”
The identical one appears on the following day. The statement, while by no means incorrect, perhaps unwittingly obscures the dual roles of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic – PPP/C – which is both a political party and one that currently forms the government. In the former capacity, it is a ‘stakeholder’; in case of the latter, however, it has a constitutional obligation to uphold the law in relation to the holding of LGE.
The law does not stipulate readiness of any contestant as a pre-condition for these elections; it requires that elections be held every three years. Donald Ramotar’s PPP/C administration is in breach of its constitutional obligation and appears determined to provoke a constitutional crisis by willfully delaying LGE. Despite having acknowledged in its 2011 elections manifesto the necessity of having local government elections to bring “much needed reinvigoration into local government entities”, the PPP/C is now unconcerned at keeping its pledge.
Citizens desirous of seeing a return to the rule of law and, therefore, to enjoy their constitutional right to practice local government have been given no option but to remove the PPP/C administration, whether at local government elections or at general and regional elections.
While continuing to deny citizens their right to local government, the PPP/C is continuing its campaign to destroy local democracy and what remains of local administration. Their actions are unsophisticated. In fact they are crude and unlawful. A few illustrations ought to suffice to demonstrate their hypocrisy and duplicity.
First, there is the case of the overseer imposed on the Industry-Plaisance NDC, one over which the residents of the community are furious. Norman Whittaker, Minister within the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, in seeking to dismiss the residents’ fears and concerns on the appointment of Orlando Jardine as overseer, accuses the villagers of being “misinformed and misguided”[SN, Oct. 4, 2014].
It is the Minister, however, who is misguided and whose concept of what constitutes a “democratic process” is severely challenged. The process that led to this appointment, according to the Minister in a press release, was: (a) the placing of advertisements for the position in multiple local newspapers, (b) shortlisting of applicants, and (c) interviews “by a panel comprising a representative from the Ministry, another from the Regional Democratic Council, Region No. 4, and another from the NDC.”
The Minister chooses not to reveal that the ads were placed by his Ministry, to which applications were to be sent! The law, however, Cap. 28:02, section 42. (1) locates the authority to employ an overseer to be the NDC, subject only “to the approval of the Minister.” Whittaker’s actions, therefore, apart from being offensive and obnoxious, are unlawful.
The Minister, untruthfully seeks to implicate the Regional Democratic Council – RDC – Region No. 4 as being party to the process by stating that it had a representative on the interviewing panel. The person to whom he refers is Mr. Ramnarine Singh, assistant regional executive officer – AREO – who is not a member of the council but rather part of the administrative component and an appointee of the said Minister! The Minister seems unconcerned about displaying his lack of professionalism.
Mr. Shawn Austin in a letter in the Kaieteur News of Oct. 6, 2014 has already exposed Whittaker’s double standards in relation to the purported appointment of Carol Sooba to the Georgetown municipality by claiming then that “certification is not the only criterion that is used when selecting an officer and that years of service was very vital also”, a principle that has been jettisoned in the case of Ms. Debra Mc Dowell’s suitability for appointment to the Industry-Plaisance NDC. APNU shares the residents’ view that the government is up to mischief.
Next, there is the conduct of Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, Junior Finance Minister Edghill and other Ministers. In recent electioneering visits across the East Berbice-Corentyne Region (Region No. 6), over a two-week period, the PM’s entourage included regional MPs Dr. Mahadeo and Jaffarally as well as Regional Chairman, Armogan –all from the PPP/C.
Minister Edghill on the other hand, on his visit to the Upper Demerara-Berbice Region (Region No. 10) ignored the regional MPs Renis Morian and Vanessa Kissoon as well as Regional Chairman, Sharma Solomon – a blatant act of discrimination against non-PPP/C officials.
A similar situation arose in the Potaro-Siparuni Region (Region No. 8) where the regional MP, Eula Marcello and the Regional Chairman, Mark Crawford are routinely bypassed – even ignored – by central government in favour of engagement with its appointed placeman, Ronald Harsawack the REO! It is no different in the Cuyuni-Mazaruni Region (Region No.7) where the PPP/C is a minority on the RDC there.
The central government is being used as a crude weapon to bludgeon the democratic principle.
Guyanese need no further proof that the PPP/C has no desire or intention of allowing local democracy to be practised and that they will continue to defy and violate the constitution to maintain total control.
The light at the end of the tunnel, however, for long-suffering citizens who yearn for their inalienable right to enjoy local democracy, is that by now it ought to have dawned on the PPP/C that it has disqualified itself from even seeking support for its candidates to become councillors of local democratic organs (towns or NDCs). Having denied people of their right to local government they cannot overnight pretend to be interested or committed to same. A similar scenario would obtain in the case of general elections where citizens would recognize that the only way local democracy will return is to get rid of the PPP/C.
The end of the road is nigh for the PPP/C.
Their despotic behaviour will soon run aground on the rocks of democracy. Vote APNU for empowerment and the right to manage your community.
