The APNU+AFC administration can no longer face the citizenry on critical social and economic issues as its promises in this regard remain unfulfilled. The only card it can turn to now is decriminalising small amounts of marijuana as the nation moves closer to elections. This is according to Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo.
During a press conference held at his Church Street office yesterday, Jagdeo accused the government of being duplicitous on the matter. The PPP General Secretary reminded that in 2016, President David Granger had told the media that the decriminalisation of marijuana was not a preoccupation of the administration at that time.
Jagdeo noted too that the Director-General of the Ministry of the Presidency Joseph Harmon had said that the “law is the law” while Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had said that there should be wide consultations on the matter. Even the Attorney General Basil Williams, he highlighted, is on record stating that there would be a need for a referendum on that matter.
“But where did that referendum go? Now you have an illegal Cabinet making this proposal and it is nothing but a smokescreen,” the PPP General Secretary reminded.
He stressed that the Government had a bill on this same issue languishing on its shelves since 2015 but it is only now that it decides to address the matter.
Jagdeo emphasised that this move is nothing but an election campaign gimmick and the public needs to see it as nothing more.
