The “social partners” spearheading a drive for “shared governance” are to convene a meeting of the political parties they have consulted and civil society organisations to chart the way forward.
The timing of the meeting, however, is problematical, as the grouping must await a formal statement by the government about its stance on shared governance.
Sources say that all the groups with which the social partners delegation consulted so far have given their commitment to implementing Article 13 of the Constitution.
Article 13 says the principal objective of the State’s political system “is to establish an inclusive democracy by providing increasing opportunities for the participation of Citizens... in the management and decision making processes of the State” with emphasis on those areas that affect them directly.
Sources say that the government wants to set out its position in writing. Since the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon who was present at the meeting with President Bharrat Jagdeo and the “Social Partners” has said that the provisions for shared governance in the revised constitution should be given an opportunity to work.
The social partners delegation consists of representatives from the Private Sector Commission, the Guyana Bar Association and the Guyana Trades Union Congress and they have also met the PNC/R, The United Force and ROAR.
The team was to have met with representatives of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) yesterday.
No date has been set for the meeting with the WPA’s parliamentary partner, the Guyana Action Party (WPA), whose leader, Paul Hardy, Stabroek News understands, is reportedly still out of the country.
The meetings the social partners delegation has had with the parliamentary parties focus on a paper on “shared governance” which the Social Partners circulated to the parliamentary political parties in which they propose:
* A widening of the dialogue between President Jagdeo and PNC/R Leader Desmond Hoyte to include all the parliamentary parties;
* The establishment of a permanent, consultative mechanism on shared governance;
* The prioritising of the issues to be discussed with the top priority being given to crime prevention, the ending of extra-judicial killings, youth development and the creation of jobs through civil works and other programmes.
The paper also identified a number of weaknesses in the dialogue process which was suspended by the PNC/R.
The initiative of the “social partners” followed a meeting of citizens from all strata of society where the intention of putting Article 13 into effect was emphasised.
Among those who attended this meeting were the “social partners” who had already decided on the initiative to approach the political parties.