The 2020 national and regional elections:
Let peace and calm prevail today
This is the time for all stakeholders to demonstrate commitment to democratic principles, processes and institutions and not lose sight of the fact that legitimate elections represent the voice and will of the people.
Today is a very important day in the history of postIndependence Guyana. Citizens will take to the various polling stations throughout the country to cast their ballots for the political parties of their choice which they believe are best suited to manage on their behalf the affairs of the State. This is especially so, considering that Guyana is now an oil-producing nation with the promise of hope that oil revenues, if managed well and prudently in the best interest of all of its peoples, will bring about significant benefits to and improvements in their lives.
(A point to note, however, is that fossil fuels are not only an exhaustible resource but of recent there have also been marked fluctuations in oil prices. Last Friday, West Texas Intermediate plunged to US$43.85 per barrel, the lowest since December 2018; while Brent Crude was slightly below US$50. The importance of promoting and maintaining a diversified economy instead of a mono-product one must therefore not be over-emphasised. We should avoid relying solely on oil revenues which are susceptible to the “Dutch disease” and the “resource curse” and which at some point may not materialize due to factors beyond our control. Additionally, with the thrust towards renewable sources of energy as a result of the Paris Accord on Climate Change, the demand for fossil fuels is likely to be adversely affected. As the saying goes, do not put all your eggs in one basket!)
Background to today’s elections
On 21 December 2018, the National Assembly by a majority of 33 to 32 approved of a vote of no confidence in the Government. By Articles 106(6) and 106(7) of the Constitution, the Cabinet including the President was required to resign, and elections held within three months. However, this was not to be as the Government challenged the Speaker’s ruling, contending that 34 votes were needed for the no confidence motion to succeed in the 65-member Assembly. The matter went all the way to the Caribbean Court of Justice which, not unexpectedly, upheld the ruling of the Chief Justice that the vote was validly carried. It was indeed an embarrassing moment for all Guyanese, an unwise move by the Government, and a complete waste of enormous amounts of State resources to seek judicial review of the Speaker’s ruling which everyone, even perhaps those who challenged it, agreed with.
It took a little over a year for the Speaker’s ruling to be finally acknowledged as valid, with the President dissolving Parliament on 30 December 2019, thereby paving the way for today’s elections. A record turn-out of voters is expected in what many believe will be a close contest between the two main political parties, the PPC/C and APNU+AFC. Over the years, these two parties have derived their support overwhelming from the two major ethnic groups, with a little less than ten percent numerically between them, according to the latest population survey.
There is, however, the chance that the new parties can garner enough votes to prevent an outright win for either of the two parties. In this way, they can provide the much-needed balance of power in the Assembly. This may very well be in the best interest of Guyana until the issue of shared governance is addressed via constitutional reform.
Election manifesto and code of conduct
An election manifesto is a social contract between the electorate and a political party. It contains policies and detailed plans for the delivery of public services which the party proposes to implement, if elected to office. The main political parties have put out their manifestos which eligible voters would have reviewed in deciding which of the parties they will support. However, they need to be guarded against political parties making promises that they may be unable to fulfill, as we have