Dear Editor,
The former PNC Prime Minister, Hamilton Green, declared himself an expert in elections saying, “As one who has been in the Election business since we first had universal adult suffrage…” in his recent letter, “Statement by GECOM Chairman is ludicrous”, and said a call for elections in 60 days is “preposterous” because the “integrity of the Voters’ List is a sine qua non”.
Mr Green (and the current fallen Government) wants to expand the list but can only do so by destroying the law. It is a legal impossibility because the law is clear: elections must be called within 3 months following the aftermath of the No-Confidence Motion. To vote thereafter is to alter the standard that qualifies a legal ballot.
Said another way, unless the Opposition agrees to an extension, an election called after three months will be illegal, as each ballot cast would exist outside the ambit of the law. President Granger, who says he respects the Constitution, wants what he calls a “credible” election. But his “credible” election is, as a matter of law, an illegal election.
The Opposition should not agree to any so-called “credible” but illegal election or ask its supporters to cast votes that are unprotected by the law. It has no reason to defy Articles 106 (6) and 106 (7), now triggered by operation of law on December 21, 2018. The Leader of the Opposition must not tamper with the sacrifice of Mr Charrandas Persaud, who fled for his life after voting his conscience.
Now that this “conscience” vote has been upheld, the weight of the evidence is upon Government. As expected, the denials, lies, exaggeration, immature rhetoric of preemptive strikes and “war,” delay and intimidation tactics by Government members will increase. This is a deliberate strategy to intimidate even the CCJ. Each must be countered by obedience to the Constitution.
The CCJ must be reminded that this is an emergency election following a No-Confidence Motion. It is not the usual election that emerges after a Government’s statutory five-year term ends. The law does not state anywhere that following a No-Confidence Motion, there must be house-to-house registration. The CCJ should not now try to write new law into the Constitution under any banner of compromise. One cannot compromise by breaking the law.
Secondly, on a less important note, Mr Green is being disrespectful when he tries to declare himself as an election expert. His is a history of ballot suppression because he and the late President Forbes Burnham were grand architects of a culture of voter disenfranchisement.
Mr Green’s newfound admiration for voter rights is nothing but Government’s tune for the day. This simple comparison exposes his lack of credibility. He complains about the GECOM Chairman staying on the job illegally, but he does not object to his role as a strongman in multiple illegal PNC administrations.
With a fallen Government at hand, led essentially by the PNC, the present is quickly becoming the past.
Sincerely,
Rakesh Rampertab