Cooperation, key to accomplishments in Guyana - President- as he looks back on his year in office

To him one year “flew by quickly” but, President Donald Ramotar remained on course with the work left by his predecessor Bharrat Jagdeo and previous People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Heads of State to advance Guyana’s development.

Today marks the one-year anniversary since Mr Ramotar was officially sworn in on the lawns of State House as the first President under the new constitution that limits a President to two terms.

Looking back at those 12 months, President Ramotar told reporters today that the agenda included “giving people a lot of the social needs that they would have been denied 20 years ago, and today, I am very happy that our educational programme is still moving ahead, our housing programme continues to be very dynamic and our health progarmme is also moving…  our economy continues to grow.”

President Ramotar said cooperation; regardless of political persuasion is the key to accomplishments in Guyana.

President Donald Ramotar

The economy over the last six years has been growing at an average rate of 5% and in the first half of this year recorded 2.8% growth in real Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In 2011, the domestic economy achieved real growth in GDP of 5.4 percent, and in 2010, its most creditable performance with real GDP expanding by 3.6 %.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently reported that Guyana recorded another year of robust growth in 2011 supported by favourable external conditions, rising foreign direct investment and low inflation.

Reference was made to the fact that despite the precarious political situation following the November 28, 2011 elections, investor interest remained strong and confidence, generally positive.

The country’s general elections ended with Mr Ramotar, an economist being elected president and the ruling party winning 32 seats in the National Assembly, one seat less than the opposition political parties put together.

The new dispensation gave the opposition Alliance for Change (AFC) and A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) to launch a spiteful offensive against the Government’s policies and programme.

The $192B National Budget of 2012 was reduced by $20B after the opposition voted against key government programmes like the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) and the One Laptop Per Family (OLPF) Programme and agencies like the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) Office of the President, State Planning and the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU).

With no willingness to compromise, talks at the three- party level that President Ramotar had encouraged after elections failed to achieve the desired result when the opposition political parties nominated and voted in favour of a speaker and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly form the opposition benches.

They also occupied a majority seating in the committee of selection, a move which was widely termed contrary to Parliamentary norms.

A violent and deadly protest in Linden against reform of the electricity tariff, suspension of cricket matches from Guyana as a result of bickering in Guyana Cricket Board camp, the Agricola protest and piracy at sea were but a few of the rough periods of the Presidential year.