The Guyana government’s collapse last Friday is a cautionary tale for the Dr Keith Rowley administration.
That’s how the Opposition United National Congress views the last Friday’s development where Guyana’s David Granger coalition government collapsed following a no-confidence vote against that administration when government backbencher Charrandass Persaud voted against his own Government.
Persaud voted late Friday with the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Opposition on a no-confidence motion, collapsing Granger’s administration which had two more years of office.
Persaud, an attorney, was a member of the Alliance For Change (AFC) party in the coalition government Partnership for National Unity (APNU). His vote had been described as crucial, since the coalition had a one-seat majority in Guyana’s National Assembly Parliament.
Persaud is reported by media as saying he voted with his conscience as he had felt stifled. He added that he would resign from the AFC and from Parliament. As a result of the situation Guyanese nationals will return to the polls in March.
Contacted on the issue yesterday, People’s National Movement deputy leader Marlene McDonald said she heard of the Guyana development but could not comment just yet. Foreign Affairs Minister Dennis Moses did not answer and other ministers didn’t reply to queries.
However, UNC deputy leader/whip David Lee said: “This intriguing development is a wake-up call for everyone in the Caribbean region. It’s particularly interesting, since the person who tipped the no-confidence vote against the Granger government was a member of that government. It means to say that people in the Granger government had apparently thought long, hard and carefully about the situation in Guyana and took a consience vote.
“This development has implications for Caribbean politics and right here at home. As we know, the Rowley administration is on a slippery slope with public opinion.
“This is one of the worst Christmas seasons for average citizens and businesspeople also. We know the public’s feelings will filter back to MPs in the ruling PNM, particularly PNM backbenchers—so this is a cautionary tale for the Rowley administration.”
He added: “You can run but you cannot hide from your own members, or MPs as the case might be. We’ve been considering a number of matters to come in the New Year, including no confidence motions against several people on the Government. So who knows? It’s happened in Guyana and T&T is a Caribbean leader. Therefore, 2019 will be a very interesting year.”
UNC MP Bhoe Tewarie however said the situation was instructive not only for the People’s National Movement but also the UNC.
“What happened in Guyana can happen here—but someone in the PNM will have to have a conscience first. The message for the PNM is that despite their best hopes, they’re a complete failure and they have to consider if simply holding on to power is more important than anything else,” Tewarie said.
“The message for the UNC is that it’s nice to talk of coalitions which seem the easy way to get into government, but managing a coalition in government in T&T is guerilla warfare—extremely difficult.”
On possibility of a “conscience vote” affecting the PNM Government, PNM party officials said PM Rowley had removed the “whip” and allowed a conscience vote for the Parliamentary debate on appointment of a Police Commissioner in August and all PNM MPs supported the decision. But they noted that the Opposition hadn’t removed its whip despite Rowley’s challenge for that to be done.
“So we’re ready for any conscience vote or debate—we hope the Opposition is,” a PNM executive member who did not want to be named said.
T&T governments’ own issues ...
T&T has its own case in 2000 when the Basdeo Panday administration collapsed after then-MPs Ralph Maraj, Trevor Sudama and Ramesh Maharaj fell out with the United National Congress and voted against Government matters in Parliament. Unable to pass laws, then prime minister Panday called an election the following year, resulting in the 18-18 deadlock and appointment of Patrick Manning as prime minister.
The People’s Partnership coalition elected in 2010 had internal difficulties with its Congress of the People partner. Ex-COP leader Winston Dookeran and COP MP Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan voted against the PP government’s controversial Constitution Amendment bill in 2014—expressing concerns on it—while COP leader Prakash Ramdhar and COP MP Lincoln Douglas voted for it, while COP MP Rodger Samuel abstained.
Then prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar had allowed a conscience vote on the bill, which was passed by simple majority votes. The PP coalition remained together until being voted out of office in September 2015—following which coalition partners went separate ways.