Govt prepared to consider executive power sharing – President Granger reiterates commitment to inclusionary democracy
PRESIDENT David Granger has reiterated that the government remains committed to inclusionary democracy and is prepared to consider executive power sharing with the opposition People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C).
Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo recently met with President Granger and during the discussion, Jagdeo without hesitation agreed that the PPP/C will have a presence on a National Border Committee.
But aside from this, several other issues were discussed.
“We had a meeting with the Leader of the Opposition and we respect his views and he has to discuss things with the party he belongs to, the PPP, and whatever proposal they come with we are prepared to consider,” the President told journalists of the Guyana Chronicle and Stabroek News when quizzed on whether his administration is open to executive power sharing with the Opposition.
At the last General and Regional Elections, the governing coalition of APNU+AFC secured some 51% of the votes cast, and Granger has since contended that it would not be prudent for the government to lock out the PPP base.
“We have at all times aimed at having inclusionary democracy and inclusionary government, so that the 49 per cent don’t feel locked out,” he said, pointing out that Prime Minister Nagamootoo was on spot when he told Berbicians last Saturday that the administration is open to a national unity government with the PPP.
PHILOSOPHY
Granger said that national unity is part of the philosophy of the coalition, pointing out that there should be some form of sharing, some form of national unity and some form of inclusionary governance.
But he was hesitant to go into details on his discussion with Jagdeo, who demitted office in 2011 as Guyana’s longest serving Executive President.
“Right now we are in talks and we don’t want to jeopardise the talks. I met Mr Jagdeo. We had a very cordial meeting and I look forward to the development of this concept. We want to deliver to the Guyanese people an inclusionary government and let’s see where the discussions lead,” the President said.
The APNU+AFC coalition has since put forward Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo to lead the national unity talks with the PPP, but the opposition has expression reservations on engaging the Prime Minister.
The party in a statement said: “What is unfolding before us therefore is an attempt by the coalition to throw dust in the eyes of the Guyanese people,” contending that for the coalition to put up a candidate it is uncomfortable with is nothing but a non-starter to the unity talks.
“Knowing the dim view the PPP holds of Moses Nagamootoo, the APNU+AFC by insisting that he is their “best man” who will head its team must know that that initiative will go nowhere. Thus, by pushing Nagamootoo centre-stage it is now pellucidly clear that the coalition’s objective is not to have any talks at all, but to put the PPP/C on the defensive and to project the party as refusing to engage in talks with the government,” the PPP said.
No axe to grind
Nagamootoo, a former PPP executive has since said he has “no axe to grind” with the PPP and stands willing and ready to lead talks on national unity with his old party.
In an interview with the National Communications Network (NCN) earlier this week, Prime Minister Nagamootoo reasoned that the PPP could find in him a very “useful partner,” since he has been a staunch and consistent advocate for a government of national unity for many years.
“I have worked with Cheddi Jagan – the late President in the 70s, on the issue of a national front government. I worked with the late Dr Walter Rodney to put a programme in place for a united government and later on it was morphed into what the WPA had called a caretaker government,” Nagamootoo said.
In fact, he revealed that he assumed those responsibilities because it was thought by his colleagues in the APNU+AFC camp that he would be a suitable facilitator to work with a party that he had worked with for over 50 years. But the issue of personality clash, he opined, has been one of the effects of Guyana’s biggest problem, which is the lack of “political unity” and the will to bring about that unity.
This ill, which the Prime Minister described as having evaded Guyanese for 50 years of political life as an independent country, should not be a repeated narrative in the next 50 years.
Need for political unity
As a result, he reasoned that attempts to stymie any move towards national unity because one might not agree with the selection of a person in the process, reflects the glaring need for political and national unity.
But according to him, the solution to Guyana’s problems remains a political one.
He reasoned that it may not be possible to achieve this goal of national unity without constitutional changes, which the government has set up a Steering Committee to spearhead.
President David Granger on Thursday said in his discussion with Jagdeo that no offer was made by the former President, nor anything has been asked of the government by the PPP, but the talks will continue.
“We had a meeting with Mr Jagdeo and we respect his position and we expect to be moving at a pace that they determine. We don’t want to force the pace,” Granger said.
On a different note, he said constitutional change is on the agenda of the government and work has already started in this regard with the establishment of a Steering Committee.
Prominent Attorney-at-Law Nigel Hughes has been appointed Convenor of the Committee. The six-member Committee has until December to submit a report on the modalities and scope of its work to Prime Minister Nagamootoo.
“There will be constitutional change, it will be broad-based, it would not be a boardroom change. It will be based on open public transparency and consultation. We are committed to inclusionary democracy, which is part of the national Constitution,” the President said.
By Tajeram Mohabir
