No thanks! Opposition refuses President’s invitation for talks

– General Elections could be called soon

The combined Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC), have rejected President Donald Ramotar’s invitation, issued via a letter on Tuesday, for talks following the prorogation of Parliament.

General Secretary of APNU, Mr. Joseph Harmon, told the media on Wednesday that the main Opposition considered the President’s invitation during a meeting of its Executive Council and their position is that there will be no talks.

“We have said this before and our position remains the same, APNU will not engage the President in talks unless the prorogation of Parliament is lifted.”

The AFC Leader, Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan, echoed similar sentiments.

In an invited comment, Mr. Ramjattan said that his party has not received a letter from the President.

“I have not received a letter and I do not think I want to receive a letter. If a letter does come, I will have to pull a ‘Janet Jagan’ (the late former President of Guyana) and throw it over my back,” he said, referring to Mrs. Jagan’s rejection of a court order preventing her coronation as President, which she threw over her shoulder at a ceremonial event at State House after the 1997 elections.

The combined Opposition’s rejection of President Ramotar’s invitation comes after the Head of State has, as recently as last Friday, expressed optimism that the combined Opposition will reconsider their ‘first position’, in which they rejected the possibility of talks.

FINAL POSITION

Meanwhile, Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS), Dr. Roger Luncheon, told the media that the rejection of the President’s invitation to APNU and AFC for talks will be considered the combined Opposition’s final position on the matter.

Dr. Luncheon, speaking on Wednesday at his weekly post Cabinet press conference at the Office of the President, Shiv Chanderpaul Drive, added that no agenda was set for the proposed talks, given the Opposition’s stance, but an invitation was made in earnest and once this is responded to the “when, what, where and how” will be addressed.

“We stand ready to engage the Opposition,” he stressed, adding that “goat ain’t bite” the current Administration and it can “pull the plug” on the 10th Parliament, via dissolution, if efforts to engage the two Opposition parties fail.

President Ramotar has repeatedly stressed that he has no intention of re-proroguing Parliament.

In proroguing Parliament last Monday, he was also emphatic that the move to prorogation was intended to pave the way for greater dialogue among political parties, while keeping the 10th Parliament alive.

The effect of ending the first session of the 10th Parliament via prorogation is the termination of the business of the National Assembly.

As a result the AFC sponsored no-confidence motion was not considered. Also, APNU had, prior to Monday, signalled its intent to support the push through of the motion. Had it not been for the proclamation to prorogue Parliament, if the no-confidence motion was passed, Guyana would have been headed to early general elections within three months.

Dr. Luncheon highlighted that in the face of political gridlock, which has characterised the 10th Parliament, the President had three options: dissolve the Parliament and move straight to early general elections; allow the AFC no-confidence motion, a debate that the Government would have won, even if it lost the vote with its minority in the National Assembly; or prorogue Parliament and allow for dialogue in the interest of the nation.

“The President chose prorogation,” he said.

Responding to a question, the HPS acknowledged that there may be a sentiment in some sections that a resort to prorogation could translate to the scoring of “political points” for the Government, to say that the Government made every effort to engage the combined Opposition.

However, he made it clear that this does not reflect the “fundamental aspirations” of the Guyanese people. “There is an interest in having this problem (political gridlock) solved,” Dr. Luncheon said.

The prorogation is constitutionally provided for in Section 70 (1) in the laws of Guyana and can last up to a maximum of six months.