…is all Executive’s
If your Eyewitness is to take this APNU/AFC Government’s pronouncements seriously, then Guyanese don’t really need the three divisions of Government. The Legislature’s already controlled by them – with the Opposition there just like the apocryphal “Christmas blow-blow”. Witness their inability to prevent the Government from railroading the Hamilton Green Payoff Bill!
And the way the Govt’s making pronouncements on what is and what is not “the law”, we might as well, roll up the Judiciary. Just because they’ve just retired the top judicial official – the Chancellor of the Judiciary and replaced the Chief Justice, they think they have the courts in the bag?? We hope not since they’re the last bastion against the encroaching autocracy.
We’ve seen Prezzie insisting that all the previous Presidents and Opposition Leaders were wrong in interpreting the clause of the Constitution as who’s qualified to be the GECOM Chairman. Including the fellas who actually negotiated, drafted and passed the specific act! Why take it to the courts, the Executive says, what do THEY know! Then, of course, there was the matter as to whether the people had ceded all their sovereignty to their representatives and it was now “do wha’ yuh want wid me!!” “Yuh” being the Executive, of course!
Now comes the latest Executive arrogation of judicial powers to show us “who’s maaan”!! The Minister of State in the Presidency says conclusively that the Police can decide whether immunities conferred on a President by the Constitution are applicable after he is out of office!! That’s right…the Police can now interpret the Constitution!
Never minds Article 182 (1) unambiguously declares “the holder of the office of the President shall not be personally answerable to any court for the performance of the functions of his or her office or for any act done in the performance of those functions and no proceedings, whether criminal or civil, shall be instituted against him or her in his or her personal capacity in respect thereof either during his or her term of office or thereafter.” Article 182 (2) goes even further – but what the heck? The Executive knows best!
According to the Minister, the constitutional framers expected ex-Presidents to retire gracefully to their rocking chairs on their front porch. He referred specifically to Bharrat Jagdeo, who’s come back to haunt them after 12 years in the cat-bird seat. But the fella’s only 53. Did the Minister forget Desmond Hoyte who ran again in 2001 when he was over 70?? And energetically launched the “slow-fyaah, mo-fyaah” campaign?
But that’s just an inconvenient fact, isn’t it? They should now fly the PNC flag over the Appellate Court once again!
….is all the President’s
There’s a particularly ironic tête-à-tête going on in the Opposition coalition camp. Those of us on this side of the fence always knew Nagamootoo and Ramjattan got Larwah after the elections. Even though it was their Berbice 11 per cent that got the coalition over the tape. Of course, this was denied stoutly by no other than the same two fellas – who we thought either like being screwed over or were bought out by the 50 per cent raise.
But from within, comes the news that three of the top Ministries that were counted as AFC’s to fill the conditions of the Cummingsburg Accord, were never nominated by the AFC to begin with – Raphael Trotman, Dominic Gaskin and Holder!! That’s right…even as Berbicians like Ramayya who brought out the votes, were relegated back to hauling water and hewing wood, the “town-men” got to live the high-end of the hog!!
So did Prezzie have a special prerogative out of the Accord? Or do Nagamootoo and Ramjattan just love more larwah?
…of flight path
Now that independent officials of NCN and operators of Ogle Airport admit the Tower at Sparendaam was moved to clear the flight path for the Airport’s expansion, will the Pradoville case be dropped?
Naaah. It was never about the legality was it?
