CoI on alleged plot to assassinate President overstepped boundary and authority

THE progressive trade union’s principal objective is the creating of a just society and it views good governance as a primary factor in such a pursuit. When the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) took strident positions against the excesses of the PPP/C governments, it was not because, as Bharrat Jagdeo once publicly made known, the PPP is a “coolie people party.”

GTUC’s position was influenced by concern that the country was heading down a wrong path that could have resulted in open racial confrontation, our limited resources remained disbursed among a few, and the ordinary man and woman were sinking further in the abyss of despair and hopelessness.

The Guyana Constitution allows every eligible person, irrespective of race, the right to contest for leadership of this country and when elected allowed the privilege to serve. Guided by this, there shall be no subscribing to any race, including mine, thinking Guyana belongs to one group who can treat its own or others with contempt, mismanage the nation’s resources, trample the rights of citizens, and violate the Rule of Law. I strongly believe that labour must be treated with respect, all must have equal opportunities for employment and economic upliftment.

The threat on the life of any individual is illegal, and where it was alleged to be on the life of the President, in addition to its illegality it carries political connotations for the nation’s stability, peaceful transition of power, respecting the will of the people and removal of persons through ballots, not bullets. In the examination of this it would be remiss not to note the hundreds whose lives were snuffed out in the 2002-2006 crime spree, some of which were state-sanctioned– where justice still awaits and hope remains that the promised commission of inquiry will materialise — and the narco-militarisation of the state during the Jagdeo administration.

The trumped-up charges of treason where the lives of persons, namely Mark Benschop, Leonard ‘Junior’ Wharton, Carol-Ann Munroe and Bruce Munroe were altered and freedoms denied in what were evident attempts to drive fear into the society still haunt. This is the environmental reality in which this government operates.  Moreso, there is full awareness that making plain some facts would be discomfiting to those who hate them and run the risk of posing a threat to the survival and respect for the trade union as a constitutional and important stakeholder in society.

This government has made some positive strides, but such must be expanded in all areas and its leadership must resist and reject temptations to repeat the wrongs of the PPP and/or add further harm to the society. Of particular interest in this instance is the treatment of labour with contempt, and the misplaced notion that workers can be discarded at the whims and fancies of some, though people remain the most vital resource in the production and development chains.

This government seems to have a penchant for disrupting what is working well and seems not to know when it’s on to a good thing, and it can only be because the leadership is lacking self-confidence and feels most comfortable having people in positions whom they can manage and and control, not because of performance.

The Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the alleged assassination plot of President Granger, based i on the report made public in this newspaper, has given rise to concern about what was its scope, authority and mandate and what it set out to achieve. From the report, recommendations have been made for members of the hierarchy in the force to be disciplined, removed, and their performance and leadership questioned.

To this government’s credit, the Police Force’s performance under its stewardship has seen improvement, statistical evidence shows crime on the decline, officers have been the beneficiary of higher- level skilled training, more resources have been to the force’s avail, and there seems to be less political intrusion into its work. This is a step in the right direction which must only get better with the concomitant space allowed for same.

Let me preface what I’m about to say by making known that the trade union is a creature of functional conflict, since we agitate for labour/workers to be treated with respect and dignity, justly rewarded for their sweat (brain, muscle, etc), their security and well-being assured, and have a fair share of the nation’s pie. When threats are posed to these values by management, employer or government, the trade union will confront and challenge. Should the trade union stay silent in the presence of these, it would be abrogating its responsibility to society and participating in the process to retard and reverse development, human and societal.

In any employment relationship, performance evaluations and assessments have to be done within the confines of setting out what are the major job objectives and the minor objectives, the latter referred to as one’s day-to-day activities, and how both are linked. In the specific case of the CoI it has pronounced on the performance of Wendell Blanhum, Crime Chief and head of the Criminal Investigation Department, and recommended penalties. It is said that Blanhum lacks leadership skills and must be transferred with a view for him to acquire experience.

Performance is judged on the basis of achievements. In this specific case, the department this man leads has reflected significant improvement under his leadership, and to say at this point that he lacks leadership skills shows disregard for scientific evaluation.  The issue of where one observes an error or a breach in one single case and arriving at the conclusion that the leader is a poor performer cannot be countenanced.

If in his appearance before the CoI there was cause to question his conduct and what he said was felt to be inappropriate or untrue, what the commission could have done is recommend an inquiry into these concerns, but the move to the point of making judgement/pronouncement as to whether what was done was right or wrong, questioning leadership ability and performance are incredulous, given such was not its mandate.  The performance of individuals and departments can only be judged on the basis of the objectives set, the day-to-day workload, the tools available, and the human-resource capacity.

It is not the place of the CoI to determine penalty, but to identify what went wrong and where lapses occurred, who were involved in the lapses.  The issue of penalty can only be determined within the confines of the law and the responsibility for same is vested in the administration, which is the Police Service Commission and government. While the report may have found where the lapses occurred, the moment the commission has overstepped its boundary and authority it brings into question the body’s intent and credibility, and this would make it difficult for any Government to sell in a society that is as fractured as ours.

The entire CoI Report must be made public soonest and as advised by Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, who has policy responsibility for the force, he is to meet with President Granger to discuss the report. Both gentlemen must factor in the foregoing before moving to act. A society such as ours where labour was initially treated as property and indentured and deprived of deserving respect, all efforts must be put in place to ensure we do not return to this dark period, even though the thinking and penchant for same remain amongst us.

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