Shadow Minister of Legal Affairs, Roysdale Forde has condemned the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government for what he views as a failure to address underlying issues that will always affect the overall health of Guyana. The main issue identified by Forde is ethnic insecurity. Forde said that it is imperative that Guyana moves swiftly towards constitutional reform that will address ethnic insecurities.
Forde said this yesterday as he delivered his maiden presentation to the National Assembly, making his contributions to the National Budget Debate.
According to Forde, the budget and Attorney General, Anil Nandlall failed to offer an answer to the Constitutional problems. “The Budget and the Attorney General fail to appreciate that there is a need for the establishment of a governance structure that recognizes the reality of our ethnic composition; the devolution of power to the Regions and a review and strengthening of the checks and balances in the Constitutional framework. Paragraphs 4.6 to 4.10 of the Budget Speech which purports to address this issue are vacuous, setting no timelines and definitive outcome,” said Forde.
Forde asserted that The APNU+AFC was always and is still committed to an enhanced Constitutional and Governance system.
He said that on the contrary, the PPP has no such desires. Forde told the National Assembly that Budget 2020 fails to recognize that” there can be no real development, that the great potential of our Country cannot be released, the soul of this Nation cannot soar unless the Constitutional fundamentals are responsive to the ethnic insecurities, to the dispossessed, victimized and marginalized people of our country.”
He added, “It ought to be beyond doubt that, the winner takes all system is unsustainable. There is a need for urgent Constitutional reform and social cohesion.”
