GUYANA’S next statutory General and Regional Elections would have been due in 2016, until the machinations of personal political ambition and greed for political power disrupted this schedule. Incidentally, this is not the first time that the PPP/C experienced a loss of its full tenure in office. 

The first time was in 1964, when the British and American imperialist forces worked in unison with the PNC to remove the democratically-elected leader, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, and the PPP from office. The second time was the institution of the Herdmanston Accord in1998; and of course, now in 2015, triggered through the non-parliamentary debate of the AFC’s one-liner no-confidence motion that read, thus: “Be it resolved that this National Assembly has no confidence in the Government.”
The AFC’s main reason for bringing this no-confidence motion related to the Finance Minister’s use of $4.5 billion unapproved from the 2014 National Budget by the National Assembly. These funds were largely utilised for state sector employees; the school uniform voucher project; GPL to contain any increase in the electricity bill; Amerindian Development Fund; rehabilitation of hinterland airstrips; University of Guyana student loan funds, among other public service programmes.

And Article 219 (3) affords the Minister the prerogative to spend if the funds under the Appropriation Act are inadequate, or if some need exists not covered under the Appropriation Act; and also Article 221 allows the Minister of Finance to withdraw from the Contingencies Fund if there is need for this expenditure and that no other funding source exists to meet such need. In addition, Acting Chief Justice Ian Chang, in a High Court ruling on January 29, 2014, determined that the National Assembly has no authority to cut the budget.

It, therefore, seems to me that the Constitution of Guyana through Articles 219 (3) and 221, and the 2014 High Court ruling, clearly shows that the AFC’s no-confidence motion has no merit. If it wished, AFC possibly could have further engaged the courts if it were dissatisfied with the High Court ruling, and not engineered premature elections, depriving the PPP/C of its statutory tenure, and now for a third time. Undoubtedly then, deprived of constitutional and judicial backing, the AFC’s only reason for its no-confidence motion has to be self-serving.

Another view out there, possibly, is given that the one-seat parliamentary Opposition APNU-AFC’s expectations of using this majority to function as a de facto government did not materialise, its next active option was the ‘no-confidence’ motion route. So here APNU-AFC coalition presents an ‘election’ threat to the Guyanese people, pushing them to the premature polls.

For me, the developing conventional wisdom in this 2015 Presidential race for a PPP/C’s victory may require constant exposures of the culture of political deception in the conception and delivery of the no-confidence motion, constructed by both APNU and AFC. I place both APNU and AFC as designers, because while on paper the AFC may be the architect of the no-confidence motion, APNU was the foundation for its short-lived strength. And their constant and outright dismissal of the PPP/C Government’s business in the National Assembly is testimony to their parliamentary teamwork. I can think of the many capital projects (Amaila hydropower project; modernisation of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, etc.) languishing by the wayside and in some cases terminated, and which could have positively impacted employment in this country.

Unmistakably, immediately after the declaration of the 2011 election results, a de facto APNU-AFC coalition was put in place, due to the parliamentary majority as a sweetener. And so, the coalition’s culture of conspiracy and its engines of resistance became the number one priority to bring the PPP/C Government to its knees.

Obviously then, APNU-AFC coalition forged a cozy relationship long before Valentine’s Day. For this reason, in this election campaign, a clear and intelligent presentation of the PPP/C Government’s record and its impact on people’s lives will crush any APNU-AFC’s political ammunition. But the PPP/C’s election campaign must have a vision of ‘people having a better life’, for this is a ‘go one better’ election.
(Here are Dr. Misir’s blog site and e-mail address:liberalmusingspost.wordpress.com

musingsgy@yahoo.com )
By Dr. PremMisir

For this reason, in this election campaign, a clear and intelligent presentation of the PPP/C Government’s record and its impact on people’s lives will crush any APNU-AFC’s political ammunition.