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The booklet “Civil Society’s Role in Pursuit of A Democratic Electoral System (1978-2015) issued by the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA),NFL Jerseys China, conveys a message that the reform of political and electoral systems required in Guyana will not be achieved without sustained civic activism.Left to the political sector alone, such reforms will not materialize, contends the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA).The 41-page booklet attributes the need for reform to the profoundly dysfunctional nature of Guyanese politics, which,Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping, it asserts, is rooted in three factors: (a) A Constitution written to provide legal respectability to the almost imperial powers accumulated in the person of the President and imposed on the nation since 1980; (b) An electoral system that sets responsibility for their performance in office of elected officials to party leadership above accountability to electors; (c) Manipulation of ethnic loyalty as the principal strategy for attaining and retaining political office.A combination of these factors has led to two political parties in Guyana remaining in office for five consecutive terms, unprecedentedly lengthy periods. In both cases,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, that of the Peoples National Congress (PNC) (1964-92) and the Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) (1992-2015), longevity in office became progressively characterized by corruption, exclusion and inefficiency.The booklet provides a historical summary of the electoral and constitutional gains resulting from civic interventions over the period covered. The key reform of a return to single-seat constituencies,China Jerseys, however,Cheap NFL Jerseys, continues to remain elusive.Organizational advocacy was more robust prior to 1992 when professional, faith-based and trade union activism, demonstrated greater vitality and concern over the conduct of public life culminating in the civic movement, Guyanese Action for Reform and Democracy (GUARD).In 1992, as a result of sustained civic mobilization of GUARD,China Jerseys Authentic, the party in power was removed by a free and fair election – the only time this has occurred in fifty years of political independence.However, the anticipated growth of democratic institutions, for which GUARD laid the groundwork, did not materialize. After a decade of campaigning against the repressive 1980 Constitution, the new government, once in office, found it surprisingly convenient to retain a challenge, civil society has not successfully confronted until the present day.The essential lesson to be learnt from this brief survey is that civic interventions cannot be reduced to casting votes alone. The fundamental solution to improved politics in Guyana lies more in correcting the defects in the political and electoral systems than in selecting one party over another.This is not to suggest that choice of party is irrelevant or voting is to be discouraged. It means that seeking fundamental systemic re-structuring of the political and electoral systems, through the ballot alone, will continue to be an exercise in massive frustration.The anaemic quality of our present political culture in Guyana is reflected in widespread reluctance of citizens to take responsibility for governance at many levels. Our sports federations, for example, are in constant crises due to failure of members to hold executives to account; membership of business federations comprises a fraction of the entities which do business and,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, of that fraction,Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping, a much smaller number takes any interest in the way the bodies are managed.No less than political parties, civil society needs to improve its credentials with respect to coalitions and consensus-building.Moving Guyana forward involves not only reform of political systems, it requires political leadership to sweep away obsolete positions of violence against women, sexual identity,Cheap Authentic Jerseys, the death penalty, corporal punishment, garbage disposal, climate change or other obstacles in the path to Guyana becoming a modern society.At present, progressive influences prevail to the extent that they remain the focus of international opinion (Herdmanston Accord, election observers, UN Committees, diplomatic pressure), only to dissolve when the spotlight shifts.The GHRA hopes the booklet will help young people understand how this dysfunctional political system impedes the economic and social well-being of the society. A clearer grasp of systemic problems encourages a search for constructive solutions, rather than a preoccupation with shortcomings of individual politicians and political parties. |
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