Dear Editor,
Chartered Accountant, attorney-at-law, and civil society watcher, Mr. Chris Ram, certainly went to town on the Constitutional Reform Commission (CRC) in Kiskadee Watch (“Carl Singh-led Constitutional Reform Commission is already a colossal failure with no reasonable prospect of redemption”) -August 24,2026. A hammer to the head, that one is. Mr. Ram’s list of failures is exhaustive, a commission far from reform mode, one afflicted by crises. It would be interesting to hear how the CRC’s members respond. I stand this way.
Two years post its swearing-in, there must be something to show. Nothing. Chairman Singh has a duty to differ, set the record in order. Attorney General Nandlall, SC, spoke of holding people’s feet to the fire (my words), i.e., they must deliver. Not on their timecard. But through what gives value for money, moves the CRC forward. Talk about money, and I swear. Jesus Christ! I thought that politicians were the ones that saw public service as the pathway towards accumulating riches. I look at Mr. Ram’s monthly compensation numbers and curse. For doing what? It’s a blasted part-time job done halftime, and the monthly payment numbers are in six figures, with the chair benefiting from an extra zero. It’s a sweet setup. The CRC had delivered, produced some substance, and I still would not agree at the level of remuneration for its members. Where is the output for the annual outlay of $74.4 million in compensation alone? From my distance, it seems that there’s a small but tight circle that collects money here, there, and everywhere. It’s about keeping the wealth in the family. I am only commenting on this, and I’m embarrassed at the abundance of riches. Self-respect and shame have deserted these shores. False pretenses abound and dominate. It’s my take.
Also, why are some of them on the CRC? Who in Guyana’s population are they representing? Then, there’s the other side of that question. A group that garnered almost 110,000 votes a year ago is locked out of the CRC, forced to cool its heels, look on. How can Guyana still be considered a democracy, when the state of the CRC and many other areas of vital national importance are this ramshackle? From my perspective, Guyana is now nothing but a house of disputed repute. There are enough willing participants, near and far, to give it the tawdry atmospherics, the discoloured reputation. I appreciate that when the CRC came into being political conditions were different. No one saw what has been rightly labeled the seismic change coming. Well, it is now almost a year since the last elections, and Guyanese voters have made their preferences clear. Why are the people with 110,000 votes effectively barred from being around the CRC table? Why are others inside of the body, collecting free money, having a good time?
Two more points before I go. Mr. Ram mentioned that “the commission and its members are entitled to the same privileges and immunities as the National Assembly and its members.” I am trying to grasp the extent of his meaning. Does this mean that the 21 members of the CRC are each entitled to a duty-free concession? If so, it’s the equivalent of sleeping on the job, then springing awake to run to the wharf to clear the next Mercedes on Guyanese taxpayers’ backs. The CRC has gravitated to being an assignment with all the rewards, but with no returns forthcoming. Commission members should be embarrassed enough to hide their faces, leave the CRC through a backdoor.
Last point, recall my prior take about keeping the money in the family. There’s the CRC secretary, Mr. Javed Shadick. Given his attachment to the MV Barima Commission of Inquiry, he must be Guyana’s Superman and Spiderman combined. A saver of distressed souls; and a scaler of vertical fortifications, through customized stockinged feet. He is in the middle of a human tragedy and a boardroom catastrophe. Based on my expectations, he’s the right man for both jobs. The output of the CRC gives an indication of what could be had from the Barima COI. Guyana isn’t a country. It’s a tragicomedy. Ram presented splendid testimony. I do some mopping up work.
Sincerely,
GHK Lall
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