Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo yesterday urged supporters to “chase” government officials from wherever they go after March 21 even as he challenged the international community, particularly CARICOM, to implement sanctions to pressure the government to hold elections.
Speaking to a conspicuously smaller crowd than previous years – made even more noticeable by the absence of senior PPP figures such as former President Donald Ramotar – at the PPP’s annual commemoration of the birth anniversary of late PPP founder and President, Dr Cheddi Jagan, which was held at Babu John, Corentyne, Jagdeo restated that after March 21, the APNU+AFC government would be illegal.
In his usual belligerent style, Jagdeo completely overshadowed the PPP’s presidential candidate for the next elections Irfaan Ali. Departing from his position at the same event last year when he had called for stringent and independent verification of the 2015 voters database with the next database as well as another independent verification of digitized birth certificates, Jagdeo repeated his calls for early elections and urged supporters to reject government officials if this does not happen.
“Here in Berbice and right across Guyana, when the ministers or (President David) Granger or (Prime Minister Moses) Nagamootoo come here after the 21st of March, you say to them, walk behind them, chase them out,” Jagdeo said.
“They are going to be illegal. Say to them, ‘You are illegal! Free up the country! You are undemocratic!’,” he added, as he told supporters that plans are on stream for the same action across the country and the PPP will “get teams of people to picket them everywhere; in their homes, offices, everywhere.”
Noticeably absent were key central executive committee members including Ramotar, Indra Chandarpal, Dr Frank Anthony, Dr Vindhya Persaud, attorney Anil Nandlall, Clement Rohee, Dharamkumar Seeraj and Gail Teixeira.
The Opposition Leader, who is also General Secretary of the PPP, said that the party has no plans to extend the life of the government, as can be done by a two-thirds majority, if the Granger administration plans to delay elections up to 2020.
“We are not accepting a delay in the election. Let me make it clear, if you go for House-to House registration until 2020, the People’s Progressive Party will not go back to the Parliament to extend the life of this government; and they need us to extend the life of the government or else the government becomes illegal, unconstitutional,” he stressed.
‘Tragedy’
He said that Nagamootoo has said that both parties need each other to work through the stalemate that currently exists, and both sides would benefit from going back to the Parliament. However, Jagdeo said that only the government has much to lose if the PPP does not return to give it the two-thirds majority needed to extend the life of the government.
According to Jagdeo, the actions of government are comical but at the same time, they are trampling democracy and the will of the people. “If your government cannot respect and abide by the Constitution, by a ruling of the court, how will they respect any other rights of any other citizen in this country? That is the tragedy here,” he said.
He said that citizens must not remain silent but should pressure government into seeing that its actions are affecting its people.
“We need to mount the pressure on them. It must go in stages. So in Berbice here, be prepared, because one thing they know about the PPP is they think we are ineffectual because they know PPP will never run down the street and get our supporters to burn peoples’ property. They know that the PPP will never urge people to beat up people and create a crisis…,” he said.
Jagdeo said he expects CARICOM and the international community to implement
sanctions as a way of getting government to comply with the Constitution but expressed disappointment at one diplomat who, he said, believes that dissatisfaction by the people is only seen in active resistance.
“I heard one diplomat saying that the country seems to be accepting this so well and I had to say to that diplomat, ‘you see the peace and calm in Guyana now [it is] because of the nature [of the PPP],” he said.
“And CARICOM? It will be a test of CARICOM, because they intervened in the past. You remember in the Janet Jagan era and we had the St Lucia accord? It will be a test of the Caribbean Region and particular CARICOM, and it will be a test of the European Union because they had suspended disbursements in Guyana and Ramotar had only prorogued the parliament for only a few months, and it was purely constitutional. Now we have an unconstitutional government. Therefore, there has to be sanctions on Guyana if they are to be consistent. We see a lot of people talk about democracy in Venezuela. So we are expecting after March 21st that the international community will pay the same serious attention to Guyana as they have done abroad. We are calling on them to not recognise the Granger government after March 21st. We have already made it clear that we’ll not recognise any agreement they have signed,” he added.
The Opposition Leader told supporters, most of whom live in the sugar belt, that he believes that former AFC parliamentarian Charrandass Persaud, who defected and voted with the PPP to ensure the passage of the no-confidence motion, should be hailed as heroic. He said that the APNU+AFC government did not fulfill any of the promises made to Berbicians and it is Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan who have betrayed the people.
For the upcoming elections, Jagdeo said, the PPP will bring one of its finest candidates and not an aged government.
“We offer Irfaan Ali, 38 years old, who has already done more in two months than what has (been done) in four years; that is meeting people and talking to them. We offer a solid programme and a track record under the PPP…50,000 house lots in the future and 50,000 jobs. We will reverse the taxes on water electricity and medicine so that people can have more… They are looking to take from you and the PPP to give back,” he argued.
‘All of me’
Ali, who spoke before Jagdeo, did not get the same jubilant reaction from the crowd. He mistakenly referred to Women’s Progressive Organization executive member Sheila Veersammy as Sheila Holder and most of his address was built on quotes from Cheddi Jagan’s speeches or book.
Referring to concerns raised about him being sheltered by Jagdeo and not being in a leading and frontal role as presidential candidate, Ali said that when he is not seen, it means that he is on the ground across the country meeting people. “When you ask, ‘where is Irfaan Ali? Irfaan Ali is where Dr Jagan would want him: among the people,” he said.
It is in those interactions, Ali said, that he hears real life hardships of Guyanese. He promised voters that he will take up their struggles should he be elected President as he will bring a restoration of democracy and economic growth that will benefit all. “I commit to you today as the presidential candidate, that all of me is all of you,” he said.
