Latest update March 28th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 14, 2013 Features / Columnists, My Column
It has been some time that the government has not yielded to requests by the opposition. Now this is happening at an unprecedented rate. The parliamentary opposition asked to have a look at the Amaila Falls project and the government acceded. The result of that simple accession was most rewarding—so rewarding that it is unlikely that the opposition would do anything to halt the construction of the hydroelectric project.
This past week the opposition asked to have a look at the Hope Canal and once more the government said “no problem.” The news is that the project will not even meet the amended deadline, but the opposition parties are not making a fuss. They see the obstacles and they now have a clear understanding.
This could have been happening so much longer and all the confrontational happening would not have been the order of the day. It just goes to show that a leader who is prepared to be all-inclusive would achieve so much more than one who believes that he or she is the boss and the people must simply accept whatever is foisted on them.
That was the case with what passed for an elections commission, before the radical modification introduced by President Jimmy Carter. Today the elections commission has seven members, including a chairman who insists that all the members, regardless of the fact that these members were nominated by a political party, are all independent people who will do what is right.
Just before the count for the 2011 polls were announced, one of them recognized that something was horribly wrong. I was at the Pegasus where the commission was to announce the elections results. The nation had been promised the results hours before, so we were concerned that there was this delay.
A few days earlier all the votes had been counted. I concluded that if the votes were to be counted at the place of poll then the political parties would have had their results. I remember calling Congress Place and being informed that there would be a minority government. The person with whom I spoke said that Donald Ramotar had won the presidency but that his party had not secured enough votes for a majority.
I posted that on my Facebook wall three days before the official announcement and incurred the wrath of many. There were those who, like Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee, believe that the PPP simply cannot lose an election in Guyana.
Had there not been the intervention by an observant Vincent Alexander, I would have been discredited. There would not have been any quarrel over budget cuts and most certainly there would not have been the many disclosures that have been made since the new Government took office.
It has been nearly two years since that day when the results of the elections were delayed for nearly four hours. Indeed, Chairman of the Elections Commission Dr Steve Surujbally did announce that there were some problems with the tabulation, but he did not say what. In the end the results were announced and we now have the government that resulted.
What emerged this week was that one man was prepared to alter the outcome of the elections in favour of the government. I know Gocool Boodoo and I could understand when Vincent Alexander spoke of his arrogance and of his penchant for borderline disrespect of the commissioners.
I would expect that a man whose continued existence depends on the commissioners would at least show some deference to the people who control his future. There must have been something happening inside the commission, because word came out that there was no inclination to have Boodoo’s contract renewed.
The nation was not aware of what caused the commission to take this stand but the commissioners, at least those from the opposition benches, were insistent. Even when the matter reached the court by way of a challenge from Boodoo, the nation could not appreciate what really caused the commissioners to indicate that they were not prepared to renew the contract.
Then came the usual nonsense that has been dominating conversations in this country for as long as there was the ethnic division. A few people contended that Boodoo was being targeted because he was of East Indian ancestry.
When people’s actions are questioned on all the wrong reasons people do become angry and this must have been the straw that pushed Vincent Alexander to talk about what he called Boodoo’s dishonesty. He also said that Boodoo was the person who was most harsh on those people of Indian ancestry in the commission.
One question being asked is why did Alexander wait until now? Surely he must have told the People’s National Congress what he discovered prior to the release of the results. And if he did then that party kept the issue a closely guarded secret.
When I asked Dr Surujbally whether he voted, he informed me that neither he nor Boodoo could vote if they wanted the nation to appreciate their independence. Vincent Alexander is now telling me that Boodoo was not so independent after all.
There has been no comment from the government-nominated commissioners.
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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