The President and his Cabinet

As we know, the “Cabinet” consists of the Ministers who will lead the departments (Ministries) into which the executive functions of government have been divided to deliver services to the people with the greatest efficiency, under the direction of the President. Saturday evening, the President swore in 25 Ministers who will join the already announced Prime Minister and Vice President, in his Cabinet. With seven new faces and several switches of portfolios, the President is clearly balancing continuity with change in his second term.
In his remarks following his announcement, Pres Ali declared up front that the appointments are not cast in stone, but will change based on performance: “The new Cabinet today is put on notice that these are the measuring sticks. There will be continuous assessments, and there will be changes where such changes are necessary, because the foundation of this new government is about results, people, efficiency, transparency, and relentless hard work.” We are reminded of the President’s 5:30am meeting, where he was forced to read the riot act to several Ministers and department heads who allowed projects to drag out.
Addressing criticisms that some Ministers were prone to throwing their weight around in their interactions with the citizenry, the President warned, “This government is not about power, and I want to make that very clear. Those who wish to exercise power, you will find yourself out of the job very quickly. This government is the exercise of responsibility, service, and humility. No egos, no egos. It’s about service and responsibility.” The standard, of course, is the President himself who has demonstrated an indefatigable work ethic and humility during the last five years as President and in the previous decade as a Minister of Housing.
Coming off a very hard-fought elections in which his party increased its majority while the major opposition A Partnership for National Unity/People’s National Congress (APNU/PNC) splintered and a new political formation We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) stole their thunder, the President gave the charge that the Ministers must be committed to all Guyanese, regardless of their political affiliation: “The work (you’re) about to embark on is for all of Guyana – every citizen. It’s to reach every home, to reach every family, to reach every community, in upliftment, in prosperity, in transformation, in a better quality of life.”
While acknowledging that Cabinet divides up overall governmental functions and responsibilities for efficiency, he urged that the forest not be lost for the trees. “The future is about all the stakeholders – every level of Government – that must be involved and be part of this process of transformation. Our international representation, our international positioning, our security aspiration – all of these things form critical pillars of the journey ahead of us.”
As such, he cautioned his Cabinet on the need to work as a team to fulfil the pledges the Party had made in its manifesto for One Guyana. “In an age of rapid development and shifting global currents, the business of Government cannot be hampered by division, delay, or dissonance. The people of Guyana deserve leadership that is steady and unified, leadership that places service above self, and leadership that converts policy into tangible improvements in the lives of our citizens.”
“Each one of you shall be responsible and accountable for the delivery of our programmes, the delivery of our plan. Together with myself, the Prime Minister, the Vice President, and the rest of the Cabinet, the advisers, and the technical people that will form part of this team – including our Members of Parliament, we intend to deliver to the people of this country upon all the commitments and promises we would have made.”
This newspaper is not oblivious to the necessity for changes that will have to be made in several areas of governmental activity which have not performed and delivered to expectations. But we caution that as the President has demonstrated in his Cabinet selection, we cannot throw out the baby with the bathwater. We cannot and should not conflate symptoms with causes. We view the appointment of the present Cabinet as a necessary first step in securing our nation’s progress.