(Excerpts of a brief presentation delivered by Mr. Robert Persaud, Information Liaison to the President, and Central and Executive Committee Member of the PPP at a public symposium on inclusive governance held on Thursday, July 24, 2003)
The People's Progressive Party (PPP), in and out of government, has been in the forefront in the call for the involvement and participation of the widest cross-section of the society in the administration of the affairs of Guyana, which is now commonly referred to as "inclusive or shared governance."
The PPP was formed through the contribution of individuals across the various ethnic, religious and class spectrums in the then British Guiana. They all shared a burning desire for freedom from colonial rule and for Guyanese to manage the affairs of their country.
The victory of the PPP at the 1953 elections following the introduction of universal adult suffrage represented the first inclusive government. This did not last long as the external machinations led to that government being deposed after 133 days in office and subsequent nefarious activities that have created wounds of division which are still evident.
Ever since both in opposition and government, the PPP has never rolled up its banner of uniting the people of Guyana and forging a broad-based government, truly representative of our diversity. The national character of the Party has never changed from the time of its formation. The PPP has and is the only Party with the credibility to speak on the platform of "inclusive governance." But have always encouraged others to join. The many initiatives and proposals by the PPP between 1955 and 1990 are well documented.
More recently in 1991, the PPP launched its alliance policy, which gave birth to the PPP/Civic alliance. The 1992 elections brought the PPP/Civic alliance to government. Unlike the 1964-68 PNC-UF coalition experiment, which the PNC aborted after entering office, the PPP since 1992 has been nurturing its alliance seeking to reach out and involve more and more groups in our society.
During the past ten years, the governance of Guyana has been of a type not seen since Independence. However, the objectives of achieving greater inclusiveness and wider involvement were restricted by the dictatorial nature of the Constitution inherited from the erstwhile PNC Regime. This constitution limited inclusiveness but yet the PPP/C Government consistent with its policy of promoting consultative democracy actively pursued democratic governance and liberated many of the organs of the State from paramountcy. We made Parliament more deliberative, allowed freedom of the press, enhanced transparency and consulted with stakeholders in Guyana. In so doing, we removed the stain of "executive imposition" and replaced it with a system in which the Government became more inclusive and consultative in nature.
That we are holding this the second in a series of public symposia on inclusive governance in the month of July is very significant. It is a month in which several disgraceful and tragic activities have occurred in our political history, preventing any form of inclusive and participatory government.
We will recall that on July 16, 1973, the second massively rigged elections were held. This election saw the use of maximum force resulting in extra judicial killings. The need to rig the election was part of a larger plan, which spawned the dictatorial, and near one-party State 1980 Constitution, an anathema to inclusive governance.
The scheme was to rig the 1973 elections, at all costs, in order to provide the PNC with a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Why was this two-thirds majority needed? This question was answered in July 1978.
On July 10th, 1978, the widely boycotted referendum was held. The referendum as Forbes Burnham described was "to amend that article so as to remove the requirement for holding a referendum and to enable provisions of that, to be amended by a Bill which has been supported by not less than two-thirds of all elected members of the National assembly." Put simply, the referendum was to enable the PNC to use its illegal two-thirds majority to rewrite the Constitution without any reference to the population, as was the earlier requirement.
Now 25 years later, a new and modern day Constitution is in place. As a result of the Constitutional reform process, we have a Constitution, which has been acknowledged as the most advanced in the Commonwealth in terms of inclusiveness. It is also significant to point out that at this moment, Parliament is considering the Fundamental Rights Bills, thus enshrining greater rights and freedom for all our people - another bold step in the direction of inclusive government.
The leadership of the PPPC administration in revolutionising the way our society is governed is phenomenal. The consistent and practical approach to instituting inclusive governance has been hailed far and wide, including the February 2003 PPP/C position paper on inclusive governance. We have changed the governance landscape for the better.
Others who have just joined the platform emphasise words such as "power" and "sharing" with accompanying threats. On the other hand, the PPP/C emphasizes the words "genuine," "inclusive" and "improved" governance on the basis of trust and respect, not threats.
We will continue to lead this drive to achieve genuine inclusive and improved governance, which reflects the desire and aspirations of all our people.
No doubt today, there will be more clarity and greater understanding of the Party and Government's position on inclusive or shared governance.