…PNC intimidation
One of the Opposition Commissioners on GECOM said the meeting of the full body – including the newly-appointed Chairperson Justice (retired) Claudette Singh – requested by caretaker President Granger at his office, was “a colossal waste of time”. PM Nagamootoo, fighting desperately to remain in the running for the PM spot after being ignored by his AFC colleagues, fired back in his Chronic that the Commissioner was “rude and disrespectful to the executive”!! His rival Ramjattan was also at the meeting, so your Eyewitness suspects Nagamootoo used his position at the Chronic to get in some serious brown-nosing with Granger!!
But while your Eyewitness disagrees vehemently with Nagamootoo, he does believe the Commissioner was focusing too much on himself – and probably what else he could’ve done with his morning – to conclude the meeting was a “colossal waste of time”. The meeting, in fact, served to reveal Granger and the PNC’s thinking on several matters that are engaging the nation’s attention. Firstly, what will be the ruling by Chief Justice (acting) George on the legality of the H2H registration challenged by Ram?
We now know he doesn’t believe Justice George will fall for his nonsensical insistence that H2H is the only path to “credible” elections! And why should she? The GECOM’s legal officer Excellence Dazzell pronounced that such a course is in fact illegal – in light of the CCJ’s ruling and that Claims and Objections would do just as well… while satisfying the constitutional demands of Art 106 (6) for elections within 3 months!! The UNDP team that scoped out GECOM said H2H wouldn’t remove uncertainty about the veracity of the list. And so on…The only person who insisted on H2H was Granger’s hand-picked Chair James Patterson!
Forget Granger’s unctuous assertion that his meeting with GECOM was to show “respect” to the Commission! He was doing nothing less than trying to influence – and possibly even intimidate – the new Chair Claudette Singh by insisting once again that H2H is the way to go. With the Commissioners evenly split between the Govt and the Opposition, in the end, it’s Singh who’ll make the call as to when GECOM believes it can be ready. If George rules for an early date in this year, he needs Singh as a backstop to George – and THAT’s the reason for the meeting!!
Granger refuses to acknowledge his CONSTITUTIONAL duty to issue a proclamation to dissolve Parliament and to set a date for elections (Art 61). It’s only AFTER he’s announced his date can GECOM declare whether it can meet this, or it needs more time.
IF it shows there’s “danger or hardship” – Art 162 (2) … which there ain’t!!
…Granger’s “B’s”
After being catapulted into the leadership of the PNC through the machinations of a faction led by Robert Corbin, David Granger has been assiduously working to secure his position since he had never been in the party per se. At a function in Atlanta, not long after the election, he confessed he’d always been a PNC member. Must’ve been from the days when all army officers swore fealty to Burnham!!
Anyway, folks seem to have missed that Granger’s not only painting anything that doesn’t move PNC green, but he’s desperately trying to build a personal base. Someone must’ve advised him that one way to garner supporters is to help their children; so Granger quickly launched his “3 B’s” initiative. He started to dole out Buses, Bicycles and Boats to transport kids to school. Then he expanded that to 5 B’s – adding “Books and Breakfast”.
But this doesn’t mean he’s ignored the PNC’s adult base after the internal (rigged) elections that side-lined Carl Greenidge.
For them, he’s been offering them another “B” – Bullshit!!
…publicity than ever
Superstar Indian cricketer Virat Kohli is married to a top Bollywood star Anushka Sharma – who accompanied him to Guyana for the ODI.
Their pic in front of “Shanta’s Puri Shop” was seen by his 38 million followers and her 34 million!!
