THE development of a country is highly dependent on the unity of the people but more importantly, unity among the various political establishments.

It is absolutely important that in any democracy the government in power provides the environment that facilitates dialogue with Opposition groups to not only resolve their differences but to find common solutions in the best interest of the people.

But the onus is also on the Opposition groups to act with maturity since, as organised members opposed to the Government, they must demonstrate that they are fit to be viable alternatives to the Government.

In Guyana, this has been a major problem with the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and its junior partner in Parliament, the Alliance For Change (AFC).

More than three years ago when they obtained a tiny majority following the General and Regional Election, it was only natural that the electorate expected that they would exhibit the leadership required to advance the interest and welfare of this fledging nation.

Quite the opposite has happened. In fact, the current situation has given full credence to the saying that “the Opposition is there to oppose”.

The Government’s budget catering for the needs of the people was repeatedly cut. Not even funding that will see the realisation of the Amaila Falls Project, an initiative geared to guarantee cheap energy and springboard expansion of the manufacturing sector could have found favour with the combined Opposition.

The talk now is that the current Administration has no care for Amerindians but it should not be forgotten that it was the combined Opposition which, as recently as in the 2014 budget, voted down the Amerindian Development Fund, denying members of the indigenous community valuable support to improve their livelihoods.

Prior to 1992, the Amerindians were more of a lost people, and strangers to development. This aside, amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Bill have been deliberately stalled, with little or no interest about the negative impact the non-passage of the bill will have on the image of the country, particularly when it comes to doing business here.

These are just some of the travesties during the life of the 10th Parliament. And it was with this in mind that the President moved to prorogue the Parliament to both preserve its life and continue genuine dialogue between the Government and Opposition.

It is highly unfortunate that the President’s invitation to dialogue was shunned by the Opposition.
What is worst is their current cry that the Donald Ramotar-led Administration is a dictatorship.
This is despite the fact that they have refused dialogue with the Administration and have voted down vital developmental projects to improve the infrastructure of the country and well-being of the citizenry by utilising their one-seat majority in Parliament.

What the nation has seen from the Opposition during the past three years is a clear demonstration that might rather than sound reason is right, and yet, these are the very people who see nothing wrong in calling the government arrogant and to contend that it is a dictatorship.

Perhaps, it is this inability to see the wrong in their action that the combined Opposition cannot see common ground to even cooperate among themselves to challenge the government.

This is evident in their attempt to form a partnership to unseat the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) in the upcoming elections as they have thus far been unable to have dialogue on this fly-by-night game plan.

Quite interestingly, when the idea was mooted, both parties declared that their leaders should lead any coalition to challenge the government. By now, it appears that the hope of the APNU and the AFC engaging in any formal dialogue or collating at the upcoming elections is more or less wishful thinking.

They have not demonstrated leadership material capable of managing the affairs of the state, and it was for this reason, it was not surprising at all that they cannot even talk among themselves.

But yet they believe they have the ability to lead.