While maintaining that government has not breached the constitution, coalition members the Alliance for Change (AFC) and the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) yesterday voiced their hope that a date for elections will now be swiftly identified.
Speaking at back to back press conferences held yesterday, the two parties said that President David Granger has so far acted constitutionally by choosing to wait on the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) before proclaiming a date for the polls, which are constitutionally due as a result of a no-confidence being passed against government. With Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairperson Justice (ret’d) Claudette Singh advising that GECOM would be ready to hold elections by the end of February, the two parties also expressed hope that the opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) will provide parliamentary support for GECOM’s timeframe.
“The next constitutional requirement to ensure that the elections 2020 are held without being challenged is the requirement to get approval by two thirds majority in the National Assembly as is required by article 106 (7). We urge the opposition to ensure formal constitutionality of that Election by giving its support in the National Assembly to the extension now needed for the new date set. The opposition must not be seen to be frustrating this necessary parliamentary support,” AFC leader Khemraj Ramjattan said, while reading from a prepared statement.
The WPA similarly declared that what currently exists is a political impasse rather than a constitutional crisis.
Granger had indicated on Thursday that he would meet with Cabinet and then declare a date but according to ministers from both the AFC and the WPA there was no Cabinet meeting held. A “The president met with a few ministers,” Ramjattan related.
Granger was in Region One yesterday for a previously planned government outreach, which saw the attendance of a number of Cabinet members.
Cabinet meeting is said to be scheduled for Tuesday.
Granger has been under pressure to announce a date for the polls.
The United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union on Thursday added their voices to the call for a date to be set immediately in light of the advice Granger received earlier in the day from GECOM. They also lamented that the government is in breach of the Constitution and this would hinder their ability to support Guyana’s development needs.
“…By surpassing September 18, the Government is currently in breach of the Constitution following its failure to adhere to the decisions of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) on 18 June and its subsequent orders.
“This situation comes at great cost to the people of Guyana. The prevailing political uncertainty undermines Guyanese institutions, compromises economic opportunities and delays development across all areas including infrastructure, education, health, and social services. It also hinders our ability to support Guyana’s development needs.
“We therefore call upon the President to set an elections date immediately in full compliance with Guyana’s constitution,” they said in a joint statement.
The AFC and the WPA both disagreed with the Joint Statement.
According to the AFC, the fact that the CCJ never issued Orders that elections must be held on or before September 18th, but instead indicated that it must be held at the earliest opportunity when the various stakeholders, including GECOM, are ready makes this position of the US, UK and EU very unfortunate.
“Additionally, we remind all that the Chief Justice, Roxanne George, in a recent decision discredited the assertion that the CCJ settled on a drop-dead date of 18th September, 2019 for the next Elections,” the party reminded.
For its part, the WPA rejected the joint statement, while noting that the constitutional requirement for an election date 90 days after a no confidence motion must be tied to GECOM’s readiness to hold those elections.
“It is our considered view that had the president named an election date without ascertaining GECOM’s readiness he would’ve been in breach of the constitution. While we respect the concerns of the ABE countries we cannot agree with their treatment of Article 106 (6) of the constitution in isolation of the political realities of the country,” WPA member and Minister of Public Service Tabitha Sarabo-Halley explained, while expressing concern that the diplomats had “overplayed” their hands by pronouncing on such a politically polarised issue.
The party further expressed concern about the veiled threat by the countries that Guyana could face sanctions.
According to Sarabo-Halley, such sanctions should be a last resort in international relations and should be only activated when countries violate sacred international laws. “In this instance the Guyanese government is in the clear. The charge of violating the constitution is part of the PPP’s narrative of demonization of the government,” she concluded.
