The Working People’s Alliance today said it welcomed yesterday’s rulings by the CCJ on the motion of no confidence and the GECOM Chairman but it said it did not agree that the current caretaker government should be limited to just preparing for elections.
A member of the governing coalition partner, APNU, the WPA said that the Caribbean Court of Justice’s refusal to name a date for the elections was a setback to the opposition PPP. The release by the WPA follows:
WPA Media Release on the CCJ declaration
WPA welcomes the recent position taken by the CCJ in relation to the cases from Guyana before that court. It is heartening that the court did not bow to pressures from the PPP to violate the Separation of Powers principle. In so doing, the CCJ has shown that it is prepared to withstand pressures aimed at dragging the court into the political sphere. For the WPA, that is the major story from Friday’s intervention by the court—it did not issue any coercive consequential orders.
While the court’s refusal to name an election date should not be viewed as a victory for either side, it ought to be clear to observers that it represents a setback for the PPP which had made no secret of its wish for a consequential order. The PPP deliberately decided not to pursue a consensus position with the government as advised by the court in the hope that the absence of a unified position would have forced the CCJ to issue consequential orders. The opposition leader’s victory lap, therefore, is yet another attempt to mislead the public.
WPA accepts the court’s declaration that the government is now a caretaker, but we reject the idea being pedalled by the PPP and others that its scope should be limited to preparation for elections. For us, a caretaker government is a temporary government not a restricted government. It simply means that the government has lost its popular mandate and its continued tenure is dependent in the first place on the constitutional requirements or on a two-thirds vote of the National Assembly. While the holding of timely elections must be at the top of the government’s agenda, that should not inhibit it from carrying out its normal functions. There is no such thing as a half-government—there is either a fully empowered government or none at all.
Towards this end, WPA supports government’s move to begin preparing the annual budget. We disagree with the view that such a move is outside its mandate. Preparation of a budget is a necessary aspect of governance that must continue even when there is a political impasse. All governments have a responsibility to ensure that economic planning is not impeded by partisan political machinations. In other words, while the two sides work towards a solution, the budget process should not be held up.
Notwithstanding the above, the WPA again calls on the president and opposition leader to intensify the search for consensus on the way forward. Ultimately, only a political solution could move the process forward. The court was pellucidly clear about that. In that regard, we urge the two sides to do what it takes within reason to have credible elections in a timely manner.
WPA continues to believe that going to the elections with a tainted list or one that does not enjoy the confidence of all sides is a recipe for further problems. Until proven wrong, WPA maintains that the most effective way to sanitize the list is by house to house registration. Elections are not a beauty contest; they have consequences beyond the ballot box. It follows that the matter of the GECOM chair should be resolved as quickly as possible so that that body could resume its work in earnest. WPA notes the president’s willingness to expedite the process and urges the opposition leader to be less inflexible. There can be no credible elections without GECOM’s input.
In the meantime, WPA calls on Coalition supporters to move into election mode—in the end every single vote counts. We do not share the view that the Coalition is afraid of early elections. As a member of the Coalition. WPA supports the push for credible elections that are above board and have the confidence of all parties, civil society organizations and the country at large.
WPA has started its own supplementary campaign by holding community meetings aimed at reasoning with the public on the way forward and rallying voters to exercise their right to vote in a sensible manner. In the coming weeks the party would be visiting several communities on the East Coast and West Coast of Demerara and in Linden.
