Latest update March 29th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jan 16, 2015 News
United Kingdom High Commissioner Andrew Ayre has correctly anticipated the unflattering sentiments of the Guyana government. Following his comments to the effect that the UK is not in support of the lengthy prorogation of Parliament, Ayre said that he was prepared to be attacked by the government.
The envoy was reported in sections of the media as saying that the Guyana government goes after people who don’t agree with all its decisions and polices. His words were “anyone who says anything that the Government doesn’t agree with, they try to demolish and discredit.”
The government did not give Ayre anything less than he expected.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS) and Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon, yesterday told the media that the government is “eagerly awaiting” Ayre’s departure from Guyana.
Speaking at his weekly post-cabinet press conference at the Office of the President, Luncheon relayed that Cabinet was indeed peeved at the diplomat’s assertions.
Dr. Luncheon labeled Ayre as “dishonourable” and said that the Cabinet has decided that the diplomat needs to be accorded the status of a “pariah.”
The Cabinet Secretary said that there must be something about leaving Guyana that encourages Western diplomats, Heads of Mission to engage in “final feats of folly.” He said that Ayre has served in Guyana for about three years “however, just like another departed Western diplomat and head of mission (reference to US Ambassador Brent Hardt), the High Commissioner has opted to use the opportunity of his departure to be unusually remembered by the Government of Guyana”.
Luncheon explained that the government’s unease with the diplomat came about when he “attempted” to portray the prorogation of the Tenth Parliament of Guyana as an act by the government that was worthy of sanctions by the Commonwealth.
“High Commissioner Ayre is terribly dishonourable, as he knowingly depicted Prorogation in Guyana as a Constitutional crime severe enough to utter that S-word (sanction) that is so bandied around today in the international discourses.”
Luncheon said that Ayre “went further and unveiled threats of the withdrawal of developmental aid to Guyana.”
According to Luncheon, Ayre’s statements revealed the European Union and the United Kingdom’s “handiwork” in its recent decision to no longer honour its agreement with the Government of Guyana on budget support.
He said the threats of withdrawing and withholding aid “hurts” because the British have been instrumental in organizing and contributing to developmental aid that Guyana has received over the years.
However, Luncheon said that what the Cabinet considers “unpardonable” is Ayre’s attempt to “damage Guyana’s credibility and its economic prospects…The sentiment is, he needs to be accorded the status of a pariah and his departure is eagerly awaited by the Government of Guyana.
At a Monday morning press briefing, Ayre, who is expected to leave Guyana next month, said there could be possible sanctions by the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, for Guyana not sticking to the Commonwealth Charter which focuses on democracy and a recent declaration that was signed onto by Commonwealth Leaders, including President Ramotar.
High Commissioner Ayre said the Guyanese Head of State needs to lift his suspension of Parliament, since the ongoing suspension has created a country that does not have a functioning democracy.
He noted that under the circumstances, the United Kingdom would not be able to justify to its taxpayers why it was still sending developmental funds to a country which has no functioning democracy and no parliamentary oversight at the moment.
Yesterday afternoon, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent out a statement saying that “…it became necessary for the Minister of Foreign Affairs; Honorable Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett to speak to the Commonwealth Secretary General, Mr. Kamalesh Sharma, to clarify whether the Commonwealth has made such a determination, as the Government of Guyana received no communication to this effect.
“The Secretary General confirmed that there has been no discussion about the situation in Guyana with the British Government or its High Commissioner in Georgetown or by any other Commonwealth body for that matter. As such, there has been no conclusion by the Commonwealth that Guyana is in breach of the Commonwealth Charter.”
Earlier in the week, Rodrigues-Birkett had been quoted in sections of the media as saying that the United Kingdom should not speak negatively about the prorogation of Parliament, since it was the British who had the prorogation legacy.
Ayre responded that the Foreign Minister should just focus on the UK’s concerns about prorogation.
In saying that he was prepared for the attacks, Ayre made reference to the last public statements made by the former US Ambassador to Guyana Brent Hardt. Just before leaving the country, Hardt had also raised concerns about the state of democracy in Guyana. His statements earned him what Dr. Luncheon referred to as a Government-approved “feral blast” from the acting Foreign Minister of Guyana at the time, Priya Manickchand.
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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