The People’s Progressive Party (PPP) says it is opposed to what it said is the growing militarisation of the State and Government apparatus in Guyana.
In a statement today, it said that this tendency is increasingly manifesting itself under the Granger administration.
“The Granger administration has a penchant for placing retired and serving military officers in government agencies and departments and to head Commissions of Inquiry into one incident after another.
“This practice has become so blatant that one letter writer recently posed the question whether; ‘being an officer or having once been an officer in the Guyana Defence Force offer a distinct advantage over the ordinary mortal of this country or is being an officer or having been an officer now is a prerequisite for certain State appointments?’
“Effectively, what the Granger pro-militaristic administration has done by virtue of this practice is to demonstrate its distrust for civilians albeit qualified to perform such functions in contradistinction to military personnel”, the PPP said.
The opposition party also took aim at the State Assets Recovery Unit and the Serious Organised Crime Unit.
“Witness the present day situation with the establishment of the politically anti-PPP inclined SARU, the use of SOCU for political witch-hunting, the use of the Guyana Police Force to harass and arrest activists of the PPP, and the use of the Criminal Justice System to delay and thus deny justice to the electors’ of the PPP vis-à-vis the 2015 Elections Petition. The PPP understands that recently, based on political directives, warrants have been solicited from the Court to gain access to bank accounts of former PPP Ministers and to carry out searches at their respective places of residence. All of the above are politically inspired and motivated.
“The PPP has noted the persistent threats by Clive Thomas, the Head of SARU to PPP leaders and former government and State functionaries. The Party wishes to remind once again that SARU has no locus standi within the meaning of the Constitution of the Republic nor the laws of Guyana.
“Any attempt to use SARU to illegally harm the legitimate economic and financial interests of any PPP/C leader and/or former government functionary on the basis of wild, unsubstantiated and politically motivated allegations of corruption will be stoutly and resolutely rebuffed by the Party”, the party said.
