Although the prorogation of the Parliament has cemented the impasse between the government and the opposition, both the president and the main opposition have signalled a preference for a local resolution of the situation.
The AFC, meanwhile, has called for international help to mediate public dialogue for a return to normalcy.
On Friday, Speaker of the National Assembly Raphael Trotman requested the Commonwealth’s intervention to resolve the political gridlock between the government and the opposition in the wake of Ramotar’s suspension of the Parliament in order to avoid a no-confidence vote against his administration.
“The Guyana Parlia-ment, as a Member of the Commonwealth Parlia-mentary Association, urges you to use your good offices, together with the entire weight of the Association, to intervene so that we could have a return to democracy,” Trotman wrote in a letter to Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma.
Trotman told Stabroek News yesterday that he had been notified that his request was “receiving immediate attention” and he expected a formal response this week.
However, hours after Trotman announced his request, President Donald Ramotar told a news conference that he would prefer to exhaust local measures before seeking external help. He also reiterated that he would call elections and let the populace decide on the government if all else fails.
APNU Vice-Chairman Dr Rupert Roopnaraine yesterday said the main opposition coalition is also in favour of locally-driven resolution.
“We would prefer to have the matter settled indigenously, without any interference,” Roopnaraine said.
Asked about the Speaker’s invitation to the Commonwealth, he ack-nowledged that the country is a member of the Com-monwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and admitted that of all possible mediators it would be the least objectionable. Nonetheless, he maintained the preference for a local solution.
“This is something we ought to be able to settle,” he further affirmed.
Roopnaraine maintained that there is nothing to be done until the Parliament is reconvened and that the APNU would be unprepared to engage until “a firm date” is set for its resumption.
In response to Ramotar’s decision to suspend the Parliament—which could be in effect for up to six months—both APNU and the AFC last week announced that there would be no extra-parliamentary talks with the government until the decision was reversed.
However, during an APNU-organised rally at the Square of the Revolution on Friday, AFC Chairman Nigel Hughes issued a call for the international community to come to the assistance of the country by engaging all political parties and civil society “in formal structure public dialogue” on the restoration of normalcy in the country’s governance.
“This can best be achieved by our international partners assisting by hosting mediation sessions with all stakeholders at the table in an effort to arrive at an acceptable and creditable way forward out of this crisis,” he said.
Meanwhile, Trotman reiterated that he had earlier engaged the Common-wealth on the situation in Guyana prior to the prorogation and noted that they had taken an interest in what was going on. He said he also notified the regional branch of the CPA, of which Guyana is a member.
Trotman also challenged the view that it is the executive’s place to seek intervention
“That is wrong. It shouldn’t be,” he said, adding, “I don’t have to wait on the government.”
Noting that there are three branches of government, he dismissed the notion that the National Assembly is somehow either “subsidiary or subordinate” to the executive—which he blames for the current impasse. Further, he pointed out that Speakers in other countries have also taken similar action to reach out to the Commonwealth.
Trotman informed some parliamentarians of his intention to seek the Commonwealth’s intervention.
In announcing his decision to prorogue Parliament last Monday, Ramotar said he would seek dialogue with the opposition during the prorogation period. On Friday he said he remained optimistic, despite the opposition’s stance and would be issuing invitation for talks this week on the way forward.
Ramotar has faced strong criticism for his decision to arbitrarily suspend the Parliament, with critics saying that while the constitution allows him to exercise the authority, it was never intended to be used in such a manner and he has in effect instituted one-party rule.
