The Guyana Manufactur-ing and Services Associa-tion (GMSA) has slammed the decision to prorogue Parliament arguing that it will only lead to fear among the populace, more conflict and make Guyana an international laughing stock.
“It is the GMSA’s conviction that the decision to prorogue Parliament highlights for all the world to see the destructive trajectory of our democratic evolution. It could only lead to further conflict and confrontation, the effects of which will benefit no one,” the group said in a press release.
It said that the prorogation of Parliament has left citizens fearful of its potential to erode their lives and livelihoods. “This development has heightened everyone’s awareness of the very apparent absence of trust among the people who frame, regulate and administer the laws of Guyana,” the GMSA said. According to the group, the gateway to rebuilding Guyana’s international credibility leads to restoration of that trust. “All parties must either resolve to peacefully find consensus on the thorny issues, including the passage of the Anti-Money Launder-ing Bill or go back to the electorate for their mandates.”
“From all indications Guyanese have had enough of the gamesmanship, the brinkmanship and the econo-political shenanigans that have characterized our political landscape in the recent past,” the GMSA said. “Our tenuous social and economic development cannot withstand more of this “push me-pull you” governance that has already driven away too many of our trade and intellectual skills, people who were trained here for our country’s development.”
The prorogation of parliament and the resulting stand-off also reaffirms the urgent need for comprehensive, substantial constitutional reform. According to the association, the Laws of Guyana require new statutes to empower the electorate to determine the composition of the government, and to have greater influence on the affairs of their own communities. “There will be no guarantee of forward movement in the absence of meaningful reform,” the GMSA said. “Guyana is headed for a socio-political conflagration if this situation is not revered soon.”
According to the group, the nation’s credibility in the world of finance has already been compromised and its competence in international trade is tottering on stilts. “It is an understatement to say that the GMSA is concerned,” it said. The group said too its membership across the manufacturing/services spectrum are “very apprehensive about the immediate future” as such it strongly advises all parties concerned to find the quickest, most peaceful method of bringing it to a speedy resolution.
On November 12, another key private sector body, the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) said that only general elections will resolve the current deadlock between the government and the opposition.
In a statement, the GCCI said that it is “extremely disappointed with the state of affairs as it pertains to the current status of our legislative branch of government.”
