…AG tells business forum narco traffickers no longer wrangling with legal investors
…says coalition cleaned up drugs money economy

ATTORNEY General, Basil Williams says that the business community should have no fear of the future and should ignore the doomsday rhetoric by the opposition, affirming that the coalition has ‘cleaned up the economy of drugs money’ and has laid out the path for businesses to flourish legitimately.

Williams was at the time speaking during a panel discussion Monday evening on the impact of the outcome of the no-confidence motion and the subsequent consequential orders that were handed down by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) on businesses here.

The Attorney General underscored that government has acted with integrity and in keeping with the rule of law. This means that he said government, though in an interim position, is still legal and will still be legal, after September 18th, a date set out by the opposition, for elections to be held.

The AG was responding to his predecessor Anil Nandlall, and former Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran, who were part of the three-man panel, debating the implications of the CCJ consequential orders, for business in Guyana. The debate was hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce and present in its audience at the Marriot, were several members of the diplomatic corps, politicians and most of all, foreign and local investors.

In clearing the air, that Guyana’s economy is not in a downward spiral and that commercial business transactions and procurement agreements with contractors are in no way affected, the AG pointed out: “…so all of this doomsday saying and utterances that we have been having about this government, I don’t know where it is coming from, but you cannot be the fastest growing economy in the world, and saying that there is a down turn in our economy, all of the business that is being given out in connection with oil, all that spending is adding to the economy,” he argued.

The AG was alluding to the country’s positive growth over four consecutive years, with 2018’s 4.1 percent, being the highest. This was reported by Article IV Consultation Mission, of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) – an impartial observer, which also noted that the growth was spread across most sectors. The NASDAQ contributor also noted that Guyana is listed at number 1 among the 5 fastest growing economies in the world.

With a projected growth rate of 16.3% during the four-year period 2018-2021, NASDAQ says Guyana is the fastest growing economy globally. “With a GDP size of $3.63 billion (2018 Rank: 160), a growth rate of 4.1% in 2018 and 4.6% in 2019, Guyana’s economy is expected to grow by 33.5% and 22.9% in 2020 and 2021 respectively,” the article mentioned.

This growth, the AG highlighted is legitimate, since the APNU-AFC, has made serious headways in rooting out corruption and dirty money, thus transforming Guyana from a narco and money laundering state and creating a level playing field for all businesses across the country, since there are no longer drug competitors for legal investors to wrangle with.

The business community was enlightened that the current political situation which led to the government being in an interim state, is only on the basis of the constitutional actors, which is the executive, acting with integrity, as was intended of them to do, by Justice Adrian Saunders, when he laid down the consequential orders. The consequential orders noted that it would be wrong for the Court to set a deadline or date for the holding of elections in Guyana when the Constitution invests that power in the President, the National Assembly and implicitly in GECOM.

The AG argued, “What if the court were to fix a date, they fix a date and the date arises and we are not in a state of readiness, what happens? The Court is embarrassed. It is a fundamental thing, the court ought not to enter into the realm of politics, you leave that to the constitutional actors and as they expect, that they will act with integrity…”
“The President has to rely on GECOM’s advice, to set a date for elections and that is what the President is doing, all in keeping with the rule of law,” the AG added.

President David Granger recently said at the swearing in of the New GECOM Chair, that Article 62 of the Constitution of Guyana, has mandated the independence of the Elections Commission and clearly outlines its responsibility, that is, to independently supervise elections in accordance with the provisions of Article 162. According to Article 162 (1), GECOM shall exercise general direction and supervision over the registration of electors and the administrative conduct of all elections of members of the National Assembly; and shall issue such instructions and take such action as appear to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provisions of this Constitution or of any Act of Parliament on the part of persons exercising powers or performing duties connected with or relating to the matters aforesaid.

“These are exacting duties and responsibilities. Free, fair, credible and timely elections are essential elements of a democratic state. The Elections Commission is not a plaything. Its independence is a condition for engendering confidence and ensuring public trust in the electoral system and for the efficient execution of elections.” President Granger also renewed his commitment, to provide necessary assistance to the Commission to enable it to conduct elections in the shortest time possible.

However, this position has been deemed by Nandlall, as a full disregard for the rule of law, but Williams argued, that the constitution is not fully equipped to deal with snap elections and described the three months laid out, as not mandatory but directory. In this regard, he said government is seeking an extension, which does not necessarily mean another three months; but whatever time needed, for free and fair elections, with a credible register of registrants, to be held. “There is no limit for the extension, it makes no sense, if you could go to parliament to get the two-thirds, it is clear, that the constitutional actors, have to be engaged; the President, the Parliament, the leader of the Opposition and GECOM.” “There is no constitutional crises and all of that, we saw the last government prorogued parliament…to avoid a no confidence motion…that happened in this country, and when they think they were ready for elections, they came out and got the licks of Lisbon,” the AG argued.

In his presentation, former AG Anil Nandlall, debated that after September 18th, 3 months after the consequential orders were handed down, Guyana will no longer be under constitutional rule, but political rule, which will allow for the upsurge in economic and social ills, which he claims, already affecting businesses across the country. The actions taken by the government, leading up to the consequential orders, he said, that by itself affected the economic climate in the country. The consequential orders, he said, must not be treated in isolation to the abrogation of the rule of law which he accused the government of practising for four years. “No prudent investor will invest in a country where the government is unlawful, where the government disobeys the constitution and disregards its own court decision…this toxic political climate has already begun to affect economic activities across this land, from all indications, the situation will only get progressively worse,” Nandlall argued.

Former Speaker of the National Assembly, Ramkarran also called on the government to respect the rule of law and call elections earliest, as was mandated by the CCJ. The current house-to-house registration he argued will only push the government into an unlawful state after September 18th. The business community is now a state of uncertainty, he argued and this will only worsen after September 18th. “The ship of Guyana is in uncharted constitutional waters, so nobody knows what will be happening after September 18th, because that will be the last day, the government will remain lawful,” Ramkarran submitted.