By Suraj Narine
Foreign powers imposing sanctions on Guyana will affect all and sundry, therefore, the call for such action by political parties and other organisations is “anti-national”, says the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC)’s Campaign Manager, Joseph Harmon.
The former State Minister’s comments come at a time when several high-level foreign officials, and even local politicians and observers, have vehemently argued that the results of Electorate District Four for the March 2 General and Regional Elections are not credible, and any president sworn in using those figures will be deemed illegal. The unverified data sees the governing coalition occupying office for a second term. The declaration, however, was deemed null and void by the court after the methodology used to arrive at the numbers was not subject to scrutiny from those involved in observing the process.
Political commentators and foreign government officials have warned Guyana about flirting with international sanctions, and called for the situation to be addressed immediately so that the will of the people is truly represented.
The Opposition, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), has maintained its position that should David Granger – incumbent President, and Coalition leader – be sworn in on the basis of unverified data, it will lead the call for sanctions to be imposed on the regime.
But Harmon, today, said that “sanctions is something that we have to be concerned about in this country, because it can affect the development…[And] therefore, anyone who feels sanctions will only affect only one group of persons, they are probably not thinking well…Because, once Guyana is affected, we all are affected.”
He continued, “Sanctions aren’t something that you play around with. We’re concerned about the threats of sanctions and we will do as much as we can possibly do to ensure that those conditions which activate a threat [of sanction] going into action, that it is not done.”
Harmon said that the Opposition gathered the small parties last night to contemplate a letter to send to the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Canada, requesting the imposition of sanctions. However, this could not be confirmed by this publication.
“I think that is very anti-national…And I don’t see any country in the world that actually would want to invite that level of sanction on its country, knowing full well the developmental path on which we are,” Harmon said.
He, instead, suggested dialogue as a means to resolve the differences between the Coalition and the other parties.
“I encourage all of the parties for them to sit and work out our differences. Sanctions is not the way!” Harmon stressed.
