Guyana’s COVID-19 pandemic fight off to false start – Jagdeo

…says cannot take effect since country without Ministers

Head of State, David Granger’s appointment of a Ministerial Task Force and signing of a Public Health Ordinance in a bid to tackle the spread of the coronavirus pandemic are off to a false start, since he did not take into consideration the fact that none of the ministerial positions are in force.

This is according to General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), former President Bharrat Jagdeo, who on Thursday during a media engagement at Freedom House told reporters that under the Constitution of Guyana the only powers that remain were those of the Executive President.
Those powers, he said, are preserved until another swearing-in is held.
“I see (Winston) Jordan saying he is going to apply to the World Bank for resources, I have heard about Ministerial Task Force,” the former President said.
He was adamant, however, “there is no minister right now, Jordan is not a Minister of the Government; Volda Lawrence is not a Minister of the Government … once the elections are over, only one position is preserved, that of the President, that is until the new president is sworn in.”

He surmised that given the legal position with regard to the ministerial portfolios, “they should not be going into the Ministries; they should not be using the resources of the Ministries –even the vehicles.”
Turning his attention to the Public Health Ordinance, Jagdeo told Guyana Times “the order can’t be effected because there is no minister”.
Speaking to the need to confront the coronavirus, Jagdeo noted that there must be measures put in place, but those powers should be handed to technical personnel and not ministerial portfolios and that there must be limitations.
“The way it is structured now, it could be done capriciously by a Minister, particularly a partisan minister like Volda Lawrence,” said Jagdeo and pointed to her “track record as a Minister and track record in rigging and her continued pretence at being a minister and using the ministry to undermine the processes even in election.”
He used as an example the fumigating of the courts and the Arthur Chung Conference Centre in an attempt to delay the recount of the 2020 General and Regional Elections.
The Public Health Ordinance that purports to confer the Public Health Minister with new far-reaching ministerial powers in order to confront the coronavirus pandemic is being met with public consternation and many expressed concern – through social media and other platforms – calling the new measures “overkill” and “draconian” with the potential to be abused to control the populace for reasons not related to the stated purposes.
The directive authorises the Public Health Minister and other Government functionaries to commit certain acts, which if there was no exception, would have been breach of citizens’ constitutional rights and freedoms, according to the Attorney General, Basil Williams who defended the Ordinance on Wednesday.
The Attorney General, in responding to the widespread concerns over the draconian nature of the proposal, has since contended the provisions “will not be utilised whimsically or capriciously”. In view of other abuse of power by the Administration over the last five years, the assurance was viewed with scepticism by most analysts.
According to the Official Gazette, under the order, the Public Health Ministry shall take measures to “restrain, segregate and isolate persons suffering from the disease, or who may be, likely from exposure to the infection, suffer from the disease”.
Additionally, the Public Health Ministry “shall speedily bury or cremate the corpse of per-sons that died as a result of the coronavirus in addition to providing curative care”.
More alarmingly, it directed that the Public Health Minister may “remove, disinfect, and destroy the personal effects, goods, buildings and any other article, material or thing ex-posed to infection from the disease”. In no other country was any such authority given.
The Minister has also been empowered to prohibit or restrict the movement of persons within, to and from an infected area.
The Order also empowers the Minister to call on the Guyana Police Force (GPF) to provide enforcement assistance, as it relates to its duties under the Order.
The Order has also called on the Ministries of Education and Health to take measures to control the spread of COVID-19 across educational institutions and with respect to immigration matters.
The Order, which has since been gazetted, states that the “President considers that immediate action is necessary to address COVID-19 and declares COVID-19 as an infectious disease” warranting the special orders.
The Executive Order is to remain in force until withdrawn by the President.
Former Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy who on Thursday added his voice to the debate on the Public Health Ordinance, said: “When David Granger made an order a few days ago placing these enormous responsibilities in the hands of Volda Lawrence and others, he acted illegally, because none of these persons have any legal standing to carry out those responsibilities.”
He noted that Guyana is battling COVID-19 and “Volda Lawrence has vulgarly used the fight against COVID-19 in a political manner, using it to, for example, prevent people from using ferry services to vote on March 2, 2020”.
He said too she used it to stop the recount of the ballots this past Monday when she ordered the fumigation of the Conference Centre.
“The fight against COVID-19 so far has been worrisome, because Volda Lawrence has mixed this public health crisis with the rigging of the elections.”