…for Sisyphus?
Basil Williams has been roasted time and again as Attorney General for being out of his depth on matters legal. In an obvious effort to show “depth”, he protested that Art 106 (7) – which declares that after a successful no-confidence motion (NCM), elections have to be held in three months – is giving the government a task like the one given to Sisyphus!!
Well! Your Eyewitness is impressed…seems the newly-appointed “Senior Counsel” is acquainted with Ancient Greek literature. Sisyphus, after all, was the Greek King, who was so crafty and cunning, he thought he could even outwit the gods. And tried to do so with any number of scams. For his hubris and arrogance, the gods condemned him to push a huge rock up a hill, only to have it roll back down just before reaching the top and he had to repeat this for eternity!
Is this what Article 106 (7) is all about?? As explained, the Act comes into play after a successful NCM. But how does the NCM come into play?? We can do worse than look at the case of Charrandas on Dec 21, 2018. The PNC-led coalition had slipped into office by the narrowest of margins (one seat) but arrogantly governed for the next three years as if they ruled by divine right!! For instance, they gave their supporters chicken feed while raking in 50 per cent pay hikes for themselves, and then breaking every promise in their slick manifesto!
For Charrandas, the straw that broke his back was his government shutting down four sugar estates – including one in Berbice in the community where he lived – and throwing 7000 people out of work, when during the campaign they’d promised to keep sugar alive!! It was a cane straw!! Well, they say that “God doesn’t come…but he sends”! And for the tricks and betrayals of this PNC Government, the gods sent the PPP Opposition, which laid a no-confidence motion, and Charrandas.
The NCM needed only ONE member of the Government voting for the motion and they’d have to vacate office and hold elections!! And presented with the opportunity to get the Government to sit up and take notice, Charrandas voted his conscience. And the rest is history which is still unfolding. So yes, the Government rolled the NCM rock up to the Speaker, but he knocked it back. They then rolled it up to the High Court hill, but the Chief Justice knocked it down.
Now the AG and a huge team have rolled it up the Appellate Hill…and he’s beginning to understand the futility of his task.
But unlike Sisyphus, the Government can change their fate by calling elections pronto!!
…for riot control?
Well, well, well! As March 21 approaches the temperature’s rising!! From complaints of “ethnic incitement” to new “fraud” charges being brewed against the Opposition, it does look like we’re heading into rough waters. This was brought home to your Eyewitness when he saw those pics of Policemen in full battle gear practising “riot control drills” in the city!!
Yes…riot control! Now who do the Police expect to riot? Going by our modern history starting from the 1960s with their “sit-ins” in front of Government buildings segueing into fires that razed the business district, every riot in Georgetown has been led by the PNC. Once ensconced into office there was not a single riot for 28 years while they ruled. The riots restarted in 1992 – led by Hamilton Green against the Elections HQ when the votes started to show the PPP would win. Then it was riots continuously until the PPP was ousted. And then the rioting stopped!
So, since the PNC’s still in office, do the Police think they’ll riot against themselves??
…for labour?
The TUC opted out of the Civil Society Forum calling on the PNC Government to hold the constitutionally-due March 21 elections.
Was it a quid pro quo for the PNC twisting RUSAL’s arms to recognise the Bauxite Workers Union??
