Time to move on by Vishnu Bisram

The Elections Commission has issued the results of the November 28 polls. The foreign and domestic observers have accepted the outcome deeming the elections free and fair and have recognised the winner and called on all parties to accept the outcome. The PPP has won (32 seats) although for the first time since 1964, the party will be without a majority of seats (33

needed) in parliament.

It is time for the opposition APNU (with 26 seats) to end its street protest and accept the outcome as the other opposition party AFC (7 seats) has done. The results reflect the will of the electorate and must be respected. No amount of protests, bullyism and hooliganism will alter the outcome.

Democratic change cannot come from channa bombing people’s homes or intimidating election commissioners. In a democratic country like Guyana, change must come from winning the hearts and minds of voters as the PPP have been doing since 1957.

The PPP did not win a majority of the votes on November 28, but they won a plurality giving it the right to govern the country. Change in the country will now have to come from parliament which is supreme and where the combined opposition enjoys a one seat majority. The parliament should be used to force change in governance.

It is felt that had a recount been conducted, the PPP/C could very well have come up with a majority of seats as party agents said their count showed the PPP crossed 50% of the votes. In a kind of way, the outcome can be interpreted that the voters still want the PPP to steer the ship for another five years with the opposition navigating the waters and providing direction. It does not call for the opposition to mash up the ship or undermine it from below.

The opposition must hold the government accountable to ensure that there is transparency in the functioning of the government. What will happen from now on is that Guyana will have a parliament that will pass laws through bargaining, negotiation and compromise. So the opposition will be able to exercise power. There will be no winner takes all any more as happened during the period of fraudulent elections.

A mentality of compromise and flexibility is now necessary and will take hold among government stakeholders. Many analysts say the outcome best suits the politics of the nation given the diversity of the society. As some have penned, the election results open up the possibility of re-vitalising political life. It should not lead to impasse as one party is proposing with street protests and picketing homes of election commissioners.

The outcome of the election is possibly the best in decades. It has the potential to reform political institutions making everyone feel a sense of inclusion in the political system and partaking in decision making. Disrupting the normal lifestyle in the streets of Georgetown will not undo the results. So everyone should respect the outcome and move on to parliament!