THE law is very clear… for a political party to be eligible to contest a general election; one-third of the persons on the party’s list of candidates must be women. Accordingly, the total number of females on any party’s lists for geographical constituencies shall be at least one-third of the total number of persons on those lists taken together, for the geographical constituencies in which that party is contesting.A senior official of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) confirmed that the coalition A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU-AFC) submitted a list of 75 candidates of which only 14 (they needed at least 25) were women on Nomination Day, Tuesday April 7. Later, in order to satisfy the constitutional requirement, the PNC-APNU-AFC was forced to include other female members, thus increasing the list 96 candidates. But the damage was already done. It was clear that the PNC-APNU-AFC Leader David Granger had no intention of elevating the women in his Party to positions of leadership if he could have gotten away with it. When Chief Scrutineer, Amna Ally, was asked to comment, she told Demerara Waves Online News that “It is not a big issue.” Really Ms. Ally? No wonder you were so callous in your defense of the accusations made against you by former APNU Parliamentarian Africo Selman. As a woman yourself, you ought to be ashamed of siding with Granger to retard the development of progressive women in the PNC-APNU Party.

Editor, Women in Guyana need to be recognised and celebrated for their tremendous leadership skills, and be placed in positions of authority where they can make a more meaningful contribution to nation building. Interestingly, when addressing women’s forums or when trying to win the women vote, David Granger echoes these very sentiments. But when given the opportunity to practise what he preaches, he falls disappointingly short of all expectations. While on the hunt to win over women’s groups prior to the 2011 general election, Kaieteur News reported (June 23, 2011), “Brigadier Granger has said that his first preference would be a woman, and that is not only good politics but it would be good for the nation.” Then Granger went on to name Rupert Roopnarine as his running mate.
In February, 2012, the late Dr. Faith Harding resigned from the Central Executive Committee of the People’s National Congress because she was sidelined by David Granger. She accused him of being a stranger to truth, and claiming she was “locked out, sidelined and treated unfairly”.
“How could you answer a lie,” Dr. Harding said at the time, arguing that no offers were made to her for any postings, either within the ranks of the PNCR or the APNU.
This highly respected, educated woman, with two master’s degrees and a doctorate, added that she “refused to be part of a movement that is de-linked from its membership and micro-managed by a few males”. She had long made public her concern that there are not many women leaders in society, starting at the helm of the PNC-APNU.
Sadly, Dr. Harding, a former Government Minister, educator, women’s rights activist, community worker and psychotherapist, died earlier this year after a period of illness. Guyana mourns the loss of a true patriot.
More recently, APNU Member of Parliament Africo Selman quit the party and harshly criticised David Granger for his alleged “anti-woman” stance. Selman accused Granger of using the hard-working women within his party as a front to give the impression that the party respects women and has a plan for their overall development and upward mobility; but in reality, Granger wanted to relegate them to subservient roles. Now the outspoken Selman said she experienced the worst forms of emotional, verbal and psychological abuse within the PNC-APNU camp. Like Dr. Harding before her, she exposed the hypocrisy of the men at the helm of the PNC-APNU who constantly sideline women and young ladies with dissenting, independent views, who wanted to be promoted to senior postings on the basis of meritocracy. She calls on Guyanese to denounce the “window dressing” of women in the PNC-APNU camp, and to take a stance against the abuse, misuse and maltreatment of women in politics… “They are saying one thing and doing another. They are using women as a front and they are ill-treating and sidelining them behind the scenes… They want to just keep us barefoot and pregnant.”

In a facebook comment, women’s right’s advocate and Minister of Education, the Hon. Priya Manickchand, had this to say, “Not only do they place their active women in the back seat just before they exclude them altogether from their party’s leadership, a la Vanessa Kissoon; and not only do they abuse and denigrate their women leaders a la Africo Selma, but they also unlawfully try to circumvent the law that has been in place for many years now, that at least one third of the list of candidates must be women. The reason for this law is clear. Women need to be in high political office if the cause for gender equality (and all its resultant benefits) is to be advanced. Yet APNU-AFC submits a list that is woefully unlawful with less than half the number of women required on it. Their explanation? “It is not a big issue…” which incidentally just about sums up the way the Opposition views women and their rights.”

As we approach E-Day in May, Granger has the audacity to solicit votes from our womenfolk to put them in office when he has chosen yet another male as his running mate. But judging from Moses Nagamootoo’s uncouth and unwarranted attacks on the PPP/C Prime Ministerial Candidate, Elisabeth Harper, it would appear that the PNC-APNU-AFC Leader has found someone that’s truly compatible with his views on women who dare to enter the political arena.
Granger and Nagamootoo… two peas in the same pod that I predict will be cooked on Election Day by the same women they disrespected. Vanessa Kissoon included.

HARRY GILL