…till the election’s over
The Americans have some sayings about endings: “It ain’t over till it’s over” and “it’s not over till the fat lady sings”!! The “fat lady”, of course, is the very buxom Brunhilde who sings in the finale in Wagner’s opera about the end of the Norse Gods!! There’s also the much more ancient “nothin’ is carved in stone” – unless you’re handed a couple of stone tablets from behind a burning bush!! Your Eyewitness prefers the much more homely “don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched”. He knows his chickens and eggs!! Those who imbibe might prefer “there’s many a slip between the cup and the lip”! That’s a whole lot of advice on predicting what’s ahead, isn’t it?
Which seems to be ignored after the “negotiations” between the PNC and AFC on their “new coalition” arrangement. (You still think there’s an APNU?? Then your Eyewitness has a bridge to Hogg Island he wants to sell to you!!) Didn’t you just love all the drama? Demands, threats to “walk away”, (AFC) adamantine refusal to be “bullied”, insistence on “adhering to the Constitution” (PNC), conciliatory noises from the sidelines (Trotman) and then, (finally!) an agreement. The whole routine is worthy of being staged at the Theatre Guild!
But is there an agreement? The AFC – actually, umm, Ramjattan – thinks so, even though there’s been no “official announcement”. He insisted he hadn’t been “bullied” or done any bullying. Really, so why’d he concede a reduction in EVERY area from the original Cummingsburg Accord? Did he wilt because of the dulcet tones of Volda Lawrence? Did she suddenly become more expansive and allow that some of her friends to whom she might give “wuk” could be AFC people?? Did she have a Damascene moment with Granger’s voice booming from the heavens??
Your Eyewitness hardly thinks so. And Ramjattan should’ve become much more circumspect in his reporting of the new “agreement”, the moment Granger invoked “adhering to the Constitution”!! Has he forgotten that Granger’s appointed himself the sole arbiter of constitutional interpretation in Guyana? At best, he allows that the Courts MAY have their “perception” on the Constitution!! So let’s examine the “agreement”, shall we, and see if it’ll pass Granger’s constitutional muster?
Notice that Ramjattan was mute on the prize he’s fought a bloody battle with Nagamootoo to secure: become the PM candidate for the PNC coalition. Granger had already reneged after 2015 on the role of the PM by his idiosyncratic interpretation of the Constitution. Does Ramjattan still think even if he promises to step aside from the Presidency, Granger and the PNC will believe him??
The Constitution says it’s the President who chooses his PM and he cannot be fettered!!
Does Ramjattan still believe in fairy tales? He should go see Frozen!!
…till GECOM delivers
One frequent letter-writer, Dr Annie Baliram, claimed in a missive, “GECOM can’t be trusted. GECOM is a troubled agency. GECOM is heavily influenced by the ruling APNU/PNC political party. GECOM will never be able to deliver fair elections without the oversight of electoral observers”. Now your Eyewitness concedes these are merely opinions of the good doctor. But she went on to make some a specific accusation about the agency:
“The UNDP offers to oversee the elections but GECOM is deliberately denying this. This is unfair and cruel”. She explained how this offer could prevent rigging. So when your Eyewitness saw a letter in response from the PRO of GECOM, Yolanda Warde, captioned “GECOM: We will deliver credible elections”, he fully expected Baliram’s assertion to be explicitly rubbished! Sadly Warde’s bald assertion was all there was to it!! Nothing about the UNDP’s offer.
She just confirmed the rig is in.
And it ain’t just the oil rig!!
…till you choose who cast stones
One Toerhane Doerga, of the rice scam fame, had bitterly criticised Jagdeo of “picking” the PPP’s Presidential Candidate.
Then he goes and launches a new party, TNM, and picks the entire executive and slate!!