By Tracey Khan – Drakes
[www.inewsguyana.com] – The Alliance for Change (AFC) has upped its ante against President Donald Ramotar’s decision to prorogue Parliament. Party members protested in front of Caricom’s headquarters at Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown on Tuesday January, 20).
Executive Member, Moses Nagamootoo and several other Party members held placards and chanted loudly in front of the CARICOM Secretariat.
Caricom had recently issued a statement supporting the President’s decision, stating that there was nothing unconstitutional about the prorogation.
Nagamootoo lashed out at the regional body for what he described as its blatant display of hypocrisy regarding matters of national importance in Guyana.
“Once again we have gone around a circle and Caricom has not changed its position towards violation of democracy in Guyana, regimes change but the behaviour of Caricom seems to be at the same place, so when the minority Government of Guyana prorogued Parliament on November 10 of last year Caricom subsequently said it is nothing that we should be worried about, that it was done within the constitution of Guyana,” Nagamootoo told Reporters.
He further noted that Caricom is not representing the aspiration of the people, but is instead playing it safe by siding with Government on these matters.
“For us this should concern Caricom but we didn’t expect that Caricom would say that what was done there was okay, that we could live with that. We don’t believe that it is what we should expect from a Caribbean community.”
Nagamootoo expressed concerns about the role that Caricom has adopted.
“Caricom is operating like a club of meat, like the ruling elites, that they don’t touch one another and that is what worries us because Caricom was never established to protect the governing elites, it was an institution to protect the interest and aspirations of the Caribbean people.”
President Ramotar prorogued Parliament on November 10, 2014 hours before the Opposition planned to pass a No – Confidence Motion against his government.
