Former Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran is of the view that once the government remains in office beyond March 21, domestic turmoil will intensify.
Ramkarran made these and other comments in his latest post titled, “Dim Political Fortunes Await Guyana.” (See website for full commentary, www.conversationtree.com).
The politican pointed out that investments have already slowed and this pattern will continue. He predicted that pending investment decisions will also be postponed.
The attorney-at-law also said that contracts will not be signed with the Government for fear that they will not be recognized by an incoming administration.
He said that “Court cases against the Government will multiply. Caricom may be forced to take a stand against an unlawful Government, having failed to do so between in the 1970s and 1980s against the PNC and then eagerly doing so against a then lawful Janet Jagan Government in 1999. Guyana is in for an era of dim political fortunes, even as its economic fortunes beckon.”
Ramkarran warned that the APNU+AFC administration would be wise to consider the implications of international sanctions when governments show total disregard for the Constitution. Ramkarran said that a glaring example of this is Venezuela.
In this regard, the former House Speaker said, “Concerns being expressed by countries about democracy in other countries are no longer considered to be matters of the internal affairs of the subject country. That is the reason why sanctions are now imposed routinely against countries that violate constitutional order.”
He added, “The most egregious example today is Venezuela, against which severe international sanctions have been imposed. Therefore, notwithstanding the Government’s apparent determination to resist potential international sanctions, which it may be hoping that sympathy from the West may spare it; Guyana still faces a high degree of uncertainty.”
Ramkarran said that by now, the citizenry has recognized that the reasons being proffered by President David Granger regarding a credible list for elections are only politically manufactured for the purpose of delaying the inevitable.
He said that the public also recognizes that what is going on is a charade and that new elections are not going to be held willingly by the Government, which must be aware of the potential harm of taking Guyana down a path which violates the rule of law and which may incur sanctions from the international community. “It appears that the Government is prepared to accept these consequences because the delay is vital to its survival,” the columnist expressed.
