Door is open to PPP – Amna Ally

In light of accusations by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) that Social Cohesion Minister Amna Ally is not engaging them in discussions over the six tied Local Government Elections seats, the Minister said that the PPP/C never knocked on the door of dialogue, but stressed that this door is open.
Ally made these comments at a People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) press conference on Wednesday, where she related that she gave to the Opposition, Government’s proposals to sort out the contested areas but stressed that the PPP/C never accepted those proposals.
“Through Ms Teixeira, the Leader of the Opposition did make an intervention that we need to talk about the areas in question, we gave them our proposals [but] they did not accept the proposals,” she noted.
The Social Cohesion Minister posited that she is still awaiting a response from the Parliamentary Opposition.
“After many months passed after the convening of Local Government Elections, I was [again] approached by Teixeira [and] for whatever reason, they approached us to have talks…I asked Ms Teixeira to let the opposition leader or the PPP to document what they would like to discuss, what are their proposals so that we at our level could discuss the matter,” the minister noted.
When questioned by the media over a supposed lack of engagement with the opposition, the minister posited that these claims are “inaccurate”, noting that the door is open to the PPP/C.

“I have reached out to the PPP on many occasions, particularly from my ministry but there has been no positive response, they have not knocked at the door.”
The areas where the two political parties tied were Gibralter-Fyrish Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), Industry-Plaisance NDC, Malgre Tout-Meer Zorgen; Woodlands-Bel Air; Woodlands-Farm and the Municipality of Mabaruma.
In April, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) had moved to the High Court to block the selection of a Mayor and five chairmen for several NDCs after they were tied with the A Partnership of National Unity/Alliance for Change councillors following the 2016 elections.

PPP’s Commissioners on the Guyana Elections Commission (Gecom) had accused Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan of selecting the representatives outside the remit of the country’s laws governing the selection of Mayors and NDC chairmen.
The Order or Rule Nisi of Certiorari which had been granted by Justice Diana Insanally quelled Minister Bulkan’s selections on the grounds that it was contrary to and in violation of Municipal and District Councils Act Chapter 28:01 and the Local Government Act Chapter 28:02.
The Judge had pointed out that the decision, “is in excess of and without jurisdiction, made in bad faith, is unreasonable, arbitrary, capricious, based upon irrelevant and in proper considerations, mala fide, malicious, vindictive, unlawful, ultra vires, null, void and of no legal effect.”
Guyana Times had reported that Justice Insanally ordered that the councillors selected by the minister be restrained from acting as or performing the functions of chairmen, vice chairmen and mayor of their respective NDCs and the municipality.
The court also overturned the decision of the NDC’s in electing vice chairmen and of the town councils in selecting any or all committees, citing the above-mentioned grounds. The Judge had further ordered that the overseers of the NDCs and the acting Town Clerk of Mabaruma appoint a day for the election of chairmen and mayors from among such candidates by the voters whose names appear on the Register of Voters for the local authority area of the respective NDCs and municipality.
To date, the matter is still in court.
The 2016 Local Government Elections were held in March.