It may be difficult for a phantom President to meet the Leader of the Opposition in flesh and blood

A Leader of the Opposition is a significant public office holder who is accountable for what he or she says. The current office holder, Mr. Joseph Harmon, has accused the Ali Administration of much more than being a “fraudulent” regime. This ought to be recognized by those who want President Irfaan Ali to consult with Mr. Harmon to fill key positions in spite of these accusations, on account that allegation of fraud did not prevent consultations by past Governments. The public must record with accuracy what Mr. Harmon has unabashedly said and continues to say. With allegations already memorialized in court records, the Leader of the Opposition moved into an entirely new direction and knowingly led a campaign to denounce Government as an “installed” regime.

A fair inference is that Government is a lackey of a foreign sovereign. That is, Guyana has a puppet Government with a puppet or phantom President. Indeed, a puppet Government is as good as an invisible regime. No evidence has been provided. With petitions filed, there was no need for this. But the Leader of the Opposition wants to enjoy the right to have judicial review, while denying Government’s supporters their right to accept GECOM’s declaration, by unilaterally pronouncing that Government is a puppet regime. In doing his, he is undermining the election culture and misleading his constituents. All public office holders ought to respect GECOM’s declarations, until a court sets the declaration aside. No President should have to ask for this.

If public office holders are not required to respect GECOM’s declarations, then judicial review is unnecessary and elections are pointless. One can proceed to fill key positions at the expense of voting rights, and then storm the streets and electors’ homes because anarchy will reign. Further, this inference of a puppet President creates a problem because there is no basis in the Constitution, arguably, for a Leader of the Opposition to meet with a puppet or phantom President. Indeed, those who stress that the Constitution says a President has to consult with a Leader of the Opposition to fill key positions ought to say whether this President is duly elected or an invisible phantom President.

Congress Place has boasted of superhuman leaders, who can do battle with “Principalities and Powers” (see Mr. David Granger 2015 campaign launch speech) and observe the dead in action as its General Secretary said in May 2020: “The dead got up, voted, and went back to rest.” Still, it may be difficult to prepare a phantom President to meet with the Leader of the Opposition in flesh and blood. Finally, the public will recall that after a Coalition’s elections-related petition was initially dismissed, the Leader of the Opposition himself declared a lack of confidence in the Judiciary or at least a particular key jurist, adding that the Judiciary and the Executive were united as the former was protecting the latter. “This is a clear attempt to protect the installed PPP regime from scrutiny and from being removed from government where they have no right being…” he is reported to have said (see SN editorial, April 30).