BUDGET BLUES

The population has learnt not to expect much that is edifying in the annual budget debates. This ritual by the political classes throws up with mundane regularity all that is wrong with our political culture. It gives them the opportunity to reinforce the principles that underlie that political culture so as to fuel it up […]

PERCEPTIONS OF DISCRIMINATION

There are growing concerns within the Indian Guyanese community that the Government has embarked on large-scale discrimination against them. This is being fuelled by politically driven accusations by the PPP using the same emotive language used by the PNC/PNCR in the 1990s – ‘ethnic cleansing.’ I do not accept that there is such discrimination but […]

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

A report appeared in the press last week of a meeting between the Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo, Minister of Governance, Raphael Trotman and AFC executive and prominent attorney, Mr. Nigel Hughes to discuss constitutional reform. Constitutional reform is one of the undertakings given by the APNU+AFC coalition in its 100-day programme. No doubt the Government […]

THINGS TO DO ON YOUR HONEYMOON

It is only fair that the traditional honeymoon period of three months of the new APNU+AFC administration be exhausted before its performance is assessed. The Government has a plan against which a judgment will be made. It is called the hundred-day programme. Little is heard of it nowadays but we, the people, who are intended […]

JAGDEO CLEARED FOR THIRD TERM

One of the few issues of agreement between all political parties in Guyana after 1992 was term limitation for the President. It was proposed by the Constitutional Reform Commission in 2000 and subsequently enacted by Act No. 17 of 2001. The PPP had earlier proposed a limitation of two terms to the Special Select Committee […]