Consumed by shame, the Cabinet, including President Granger, is finding it hard to resign, even as the country witnesses the blatant disregard for the rule of law. So said attorney-at-law Charles Ramson as he stressed that the time of the APNU+AFC Cabinet has legally expired.
Ramson made note of the government’s statement issued on July 13, 2019, following the consequential orders issued by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). He said that in that statement, the APNU+AFC accepted that it is an “interim government” but rejected the constitutional requirement for the Cabinet, including the President, to resign by stating “Cabinet has not stopped functioning.”
He said that in that very statement, the government failed to acknowledge its “caretaker” title which was specifically referenced in the consequential orders.
Further, Ramson noted that in an effort to emphasise the obligation for the Cabinet to resign upon a vote of no-confidence in Parliament, the CCJ stated at paragraph 5 of the consequential orders, “The judiciary interprets the Constitution. But, as we intimated in our earlier judgment, these particular provisions require no gloss on the part of the Court in order to render them intelligible and workable. Their meaning is clear and it is the responsibility of constitutional actors in Guyana to honour them. Upon the passage of a vote of no confidence, the Article requires the resignation of the Cabinet including the President.”
Ramson said that the Constitution, and ruling from the CCJ are clear; he said that the government should now say why it is choosing to accept one part of the ruling while rejecting others. The attorney said that the clear answer is that the government is simply ashamed for the Cabinet to go through the act of resigning.
Ramson said that a resignation by the Cabinet would be an admission of failure and defeat.
“In addition, the government is also ashamed to acknowledge the “caretaker” status having said to the entire nation that there is no such concept as a “caretaker” concept in Guyana. The acknowledgement would be an admission of being wrong. “
According to Ramson, the bottom line is that the APNU+AFC Government will forever be recorded as the first government in Guyana’s history to lose a no-confidence vote.
“Despite its refusal and its ashamedness, the Constitution states that Cabinet, including the President, are required to resign and the government is now a caretaker government or interim government. When the Cabinet including the President resigns that will also be a first in Guyana’s history.”
