Nagamootoo’s Berbice gambit dismissed – Opposition Leader

guyana times

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has once again reiterated his Party’s position as it relates to high-level proposals and discussions coming from or involving Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo.

In a telephone interview with Guyana Times on Monday, Jagdeo stated that the Prime Minister sought to give the public the impression that the PPP/C members have become frustrated and were “on our knees begging” to participate in a national unity Government.

“It is the APNU/AFC’s proposal to us; it is not like we have made an approach to them to have a national unity Government. When I had met with President [David] Granger, one of the items on the agenda was the national unity committee. Then Nagamootoo says in Whim to the people that they are inviting us to form a national unity Government which is very different than participating in a national unity committee,” said the former President.

He is of the view that when the Prime Minister visited Whim, Berbice and was met with a ‘bad reception’ from citizens, he “wanted to say something to Berbicians”.

Jagdeo maintained that any talks of a national unity government would have to come from the Head of State of Guyana, David Granger.

The Opposition Leader elaborated once again that when he met the President recently, an agenda was presented to him which had five items listed. Of the five, Jagdeo committed to participating in the one which related to border issues, while the national unity committee was one of the four items remaining.

“I told the President about the need to have a more conducive atmosphere and that I think that they need to finish the era of campaigning because they are still in campaign mode before we talk about participation in this committee. Shortly after Nagamootoo makes a statement in Berbice about a national unity Government and so I said that Nagamootoo does not have the authority to offer to us participation in a national unity Government. He is neither Head of State nor the Head of Government and I know he tends to be very loose with his language,” said Jagdeo.

According to the Opposition Leader, his response to the Prime Minister’s declaration will remain the same and until he hears from President Granger himself that there is an offer for a national unity Government, he will not take whatever Prime Minister Nagamootoo has to say.

With regard to the claim by the government official that if President Granger were to head the unity committee, the PPP/C, and Jagdeo in particular, would still have issues, the Opposition Leader stated that the issue was with the Prime Minister and not the President.

“If I hear from Granger, I will take it seriously. So what Nagamootoo is doing basically is he is dragging Granger in, I said I am not taking HIM seriously, not that I won’t take Granger seriously. So he wants to spread the criticism over to Granger because what I said is that the President is the Head of State and as the Head of Government, he has the authority to make that offer,” he proffered.