Dear Editor,
Former President Ramotar’s statement as reported under the caption ‘Ramotar says he doesn’t regret proroguing Parliament’ in the Stabroek News, November 9, should not be taken seriously. Politicians generally do not admit to their mistakes, so his statement is not unexpected.
The stage was set for the premature end of the Ramotar presidency at the onset of his administration. Soon after he took office, I wrote: “I believe the voters have now spoken and they are demanding change from the old ways. Unfortunately, the newly elected President and his party do not seem to get the message. President Ramotar must walk the talk to demonstrate his commitment to national unity. His preliminary list of ministers does not give credence to his commitment, and the musings of Dr Prem Misir, communications czar in the office of the former President that ‘while it [the PPP] may not have full control of Parliament, the President has full veto powers over practically anything presented in Parliament, which may not be in the interest of the nation,’ are troubling. With 48% of the votes, the President and his party cannot be considered the sole decider of what is in the national interest” (‘The President and his party cannot be considered the sole decider of what is in the national interest’ SN, December 7, 2011).
After observing the former President in action, one year later I wrote: “Over the last year, the government has been sending mixed messages to the opposition. One cannot demonize an opponent while at the same time expect cooperation… It is apparent that since the November 2011 elections, the government and the governing party have been in denial and have not recognized the reality of the political situation… Ultimately, Guyana’s political problems can only be solved by Guyanese and the solution must be based on ‘give and take’ negotiations. The President should realize that through necessity (his party having a minority in the National Assembly), he has an opportunity to change the course of Guyana’s history and stamp his legacy on the nation. He can be the first President to heal the racial divide through a more inclusive approach to government. He, and not his advisers or party, will be judged by history. He needs a new approach to work with the opposition parties” (‘Guyana’s political problems can only be solved by Guyanese on give-and-take basis’ SN, December 14, 2012).
It boggles the mind to understand how Mr Ramotar could have expected cooperation from the opposition parties during prorogation when prior to prorogation he refused to move from his entrenched positions to accommodate their compromises. Once Parliament was prorogued, it was game over for the PPP government. And how could he have expected support from the foreign governments when they saw his move as being undemocratic? These are the same governments that had helped restore democracy to Guyana, enabling the PPP to regain power in the first place. Yes, the Stephen Harper government in Canada prorogued parliament to avoid defeat, but Canadians never had to go begging foreign governments to help them restore democracy in Canada. Did Mr Ramotar not read Cheddi Jagan’s The West on Trial to understand the perception of his party and how things work in the real world of big power politics?
As a government that was metaphorically on the ropes just prior to the prorogation, Mr Ramotar and his team were either totally inept at political strategy or had totally underestimated the Moses Nagamootoo factor in the AFC. In the end, instead of playing the AFC against APNU as savvy politicians would have done, they allowed Mr Nagamootoo to emerge as kingmaker who, by voicing support for an alliance with APNU when Mr Ramjattan was dithering, forced the latter’s hand to bring about the alliance. The rest is now history.
Mr Ramotar may be a nice fellow but the facts indicate that he was not presidential material. The Central Executive Committee of his party, in selecting him as their presidential candidate in 2011 by stifling dissent and competition in the selection process, did a disservice to him and to the party, a move that is likely to keep them in opposition beyond 2020. Much introspection, critical thinking, and hard work will be required to reinvent the PPP to make it compliant with democratic norms of the twenty-first century in order to become a formidable force in the political affairs of the country once again.
Yours faithfully,
Harry Hergash
