Why should the two opposition parties—APNU and the AFC—be expressing surprise about claimed non-cooperation from the governing PPP/C over the failure to have a meeting of the vital Selection Committee of the National Assembly?
They certainly have the answer but prefer to continue engaging in propaganda politics to capture anti-government media coverage on a problem of their own creation.
That problem was their inflexibility to accept the logic of the proportional representation argument as advanced by the majority party,the PPP/C, in the composition of the parliament’s Select Committee for which the creation and functioning of other relevant committees depend.
Seized with the message for bi-partisan co-operation, as expressed by the electorate at last November’s general election, President Donald Ramotar had moved with alacrity in his advocacy for a tripartite approach by the three parliamentary parties  in the national interest. This itself took some time to materialise in the shaping of a work agenda.
However, as the Guyanese people were to discover, contrary to established norms in a multi-party parliamentary democracy, instead of seeking a consensus in  electing  the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Parliament, APNU and the AFC threw all pretence of cooperation and political maturity aside to grab both of those posts.
Then followed the related immature, if not arrogant behaviour by the APNU/AFC alliance. They opted to ignore the proposal by the PPP/C—in the spirit of the advocated tripartite approach—of five of its representatives on the 10-member Selection Committee; four from APNU and one for the AFC–based on the votes they had garnered and seats allocated on the basis of proportional representation.
Well, having hijacked the positions of both Speaker and Deputy Speaker, using flawed arguments to justify giving themselves the majority of one to dominate the Selection Committee, instead of a 50-50 share of representatives that would have influenced tripartite cooperation in GUYANA’s interest, and based on the declared results of the November 28 poll, the APNU/AFC alliance is now throwing political tantrums to capture media headlines and in  the process embarrassing themselves in the eyes of some of their  own supporters.
Why should the APNU/AFC opposition  really expect the majority party in parliament, led by President Donald Ramotar, to  simply genuflect to their political demands? They need, instead, to engage in critical re-appraisals of the negative positions they have been adopting since the outcome of the November poll and stop trying to shift blame for non-cooperation at the door of the governing PPP/C.
President Ramotar has repeatedly stated,even as  recently as last week, that holding  of a snap election,  as a  consequence of current divisive politics by APNU and the AFC, was certainly NOT a current consideration of his administration or that of the majority party in parliament. The opposition, therefore, should seriously ponder  this position of the President and move with sincerity for tripartite cooperation, instead of fuelling the harmful politics of gridlock.
This is not an option for national unity that’s essential for Guyana to remain on the  growth path of social and economic development for which it  currently holds the admirable top rating position among ALL partners of our Caribbean Community.
The APNU/AFC alliance should seriously and urgently review their politics of gridlock. Sober elements within their leadership ranks should inspire new thinking that could yet result in making the tripartite approach in governance the healthy, practical alternative, before it becomes absolutely necessary for the government to come forward with arrangements not currently on its political work agenda.