Dear Editor,
The APNU+AFC government has recently completed four years in office. Despite attempts by the government to talk up its achievements, the fact of the matter is that the administration’s balance sheet is far from impressive. There are no major projects initiated by this administration since it took office. Most of the big projects such as the expansion of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, the construction of the East Coast Demerara four-lane road and the projected construction of the bypass road from Ogle to Diamond were projects initiated by the previous PPP/C government.
Its major failing is in the area of constitutional reforms and its inability to take measures to foster national reconciliation. The Ministry of Social Cohesion has turned out be a waste of taxpayers’ money as the country is even more polarized along political and ethnic lines.
From a governance perspective, this administration will go down in history as the first to be defeated by a no-confidence vote in Parliament, even though the matter is still to be definitively pronounced on by the Caribbean Court of Appeal. The writing however is on the wall. Without trying to preempt the ruling of the CCJ, it is difficult to see how the administration can survive its full term in office without trampling on the Constitution and the democratic principles enshrined therein.
The Guyanese people are keenly looking forward to the ruling by the CCJ on the no-confidence motion and the appointment of the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission.
Whatever the ruling, the political and constitutional landscape in this country will not be the same. Several Ministers and Members of Parliament were forced to resign from Parliament as a consequence of a ruling by the Chief Justice on the issue of dual citizenship.
It will be interesting to see how events will unfold in the upcoming period.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
