“ARE we perfect as a Government? No. Have we made all the right decisions? No. But are we dictatorial? No, we are not. And are we a dictatorship? No, we are not.”

These were the sentiments of Presidential Advisor on Governance, Gail Teixeira, during a recent edition of the television programme “Political Scope” aired on the National Communications Network (NCN), where she rejected criticism from Opposition quarters.
According to her, the current People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Administration is “building a democracy” and the accusations levelled against the Government are “fallacious” and intended to ‘mamaguy’ (deceive) the Guyanese people.
Teixeira questioned the grounds for these allegations. “Where are the violations?”

EASY CATCH PHRASES
In addition to the dictatorship label, terms such as narco-state and failed state, etc. have been bandied about by politicians from the combined Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC), since the November 10 prorogation of Parliament.
The presidential adviser contended that these terms are “easy catchphrases” that leave much to be desired. “It is easy to say catchphrases such as dictatorship, rather to say that we have some problems and we don’t agree with the Government or we agree with the government on this,” she said.
Teixeira maintains that the grounds for these accusations are baseless and pointed out that there are facts, historic and current, that negate claims of “dictatorship.”
She pointed out that in every developing democracy there are indicators against which growth is measured, including: a free press, electoral laws, the rule of law and preservation of human rights.
On the question of a free press, Guyana has 20 television stations, 13 radio stations and four daily newspapers.
“[Of these] Government has one newspaper, one television station and one radio station….we have a very free press, which is a basic tenet in determining whether a society is democratic or not,” Teixeira said.
Relative to local electoral laws, she highlighted that from 1992 to date, Guyana has had five general and regional elections – all of which have been deemed free and fair by international elections observers.
“We have never had an accusation that the elections were fraudulent, and we are proud of that,” the presidential advisor said.
When it comes to the rule of law, she stressed that there can be no doubt that the judiciary is intact, independent and does not bow to the Government.
“There have been many cases where the Government has lost…today people are able to have their day in court…the Opposition is not prevented from having a say…..they have not been encumbered in exercising their rights, ” Teixeira said.
She added that civilian law- enforcement officers are loyal only to the Constitution. “Human rights are intact,” the presidential advisor stressed.
According to her, irrespective of the criticisms, the facts make it clear that Guyana today is not a dictatorship.
“A dictatorship, well that describes it correctly what was…this is not the Guyana today…the word dictatorship is extremely offensive to many of us, because all of our lives were spent getting rid of dictatorship, to build a democracy,” Teixeira said, adding that many of the younger generation do not fully understand what it was to live during that era.
“The question is whether there is a dictatorship and the answer is no!” she said emphatically.

AN OPPOSITION PROBLEM
She surmised too that the problem the Opposition has is recognising that it is an Opposition. “They are the ones who are dictatorial,” the presidential advisor opined.
Teixeira added, “With the one-seat majority, the Opposition feels they can run Government from outside of the Government, that they can run Government from Parliament and [in doing so] force the current Administration to become unpopular and [subsequently] be successful in removing the Government.”
However, she stated that the Guyanese people are not ignorant of political machinations.
“I say to the people, do not take lightly the actions of the Opposition in the Parliament, because they are casting their shadow as to what could happen were they, if they were, to ever get into Government. If they are taking such anti-national and dictatorial positions outside of Government, one wonders what would happen were they to get into Government,” she said.
On that note, she reiterated her sentiments on the ability of the Guyanese people to sift through the “noise” and make decisions that are in their interest and, by extension, in the interest of the Guyanese people.
“The public has the power in their hands. The electorate has to know that they are powerful. Ultimately it is the electorate that determines the fate of this country,” the presidential advisor said.

MY WAY OR HIGHWAY 
In her view, another problem for the combined Opposition, is their consistent “my way or the highway” position, always coming to the table with maximum positions that do not serve the best interest of all Guyanese people.

“The worst thing for any Opposition that wants to get into Government [is not] speaking for all the people of your country….the Opposition has, every time in Parliament on several issues, spoken about their constituencies. Are they saying that the other people do not count?,” she said, adding that these are dangerous trends.
Teixeira cited several examples, including the combined Opposition’s stance on the Anti-Money Laundering and the Countering of the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) (Amendment) Bill, among others.
“Clearly it is almost as if they are casting shadows and the shadow is on them…particularly considering the history they [have] come out of,” she said.
The presidential advisor charged that there has never been any area where a compromise was struck in the interest of moving forward. “When has there been a compromise? It is the Opposition that is behaving, in the Opposition, like dictators,” she said.
Acknowledging the negative impacts of constant “mamaguying,” Teixeira expressed confidence in the Guyanese people.
“I believe that if people sit down in their quiet time, they will realise,” she said.
Teixeira reiterated that the Guyanese people do not have short memories. “I have always believed that the Guyanese people are conscious and that have come out of struggles…struggles for democracy, for rights, for eradication of poverty,” she said.
What is clear, she noted, is that the status quo in Guyana is one that is much different from that of pre-1992; and the country continues to develop on all fronts.
“People’s memories are not short and the claim of dictatorship is the Opposition grasping at straws. The arguments are simply wrong. If you look at the PPP, the situation is different,” the presidential advisor concluded, adding that the current Administration’s track record speaks volumes.