The ousting of Ubraj Narine, Georgetown’s Mayor, from the National Reserve speaks volumes of the level of “domination and control” the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has on state institutions, says Opposition Parliamentarian, Senior Counsel, Roysdale Forde.
Speaking to reporters and supporters outside of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court this morning, where the Mayor and Opposition Parliamentarian, Sherod Duncan were arraigned for racial remarks and other offences, Forde accused the joint services of kowtowing to the regime.
Forde said that the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) is tasked with upholding the Constitution, noting that Narine’s charges stemmed from the senior functionary merely exercising his constitutional right to freedom of expression.
Also, the Senior Counsel said that Narine’s disembodiment is illegal.
“The law requires, in relation to a reservist, that he’s only subject to military discipline and military law when he’s called into service. There’s been no order issued from the government or the army calling Mayor into service.
The purported removal of the Mayor as a patriot from the Guyanese army is another clear step towards a dictatorship. It shows how much the Chief-of-Staff has become comprised, and it shows how much the police force and the joint service is rendering themselves traitors to the Guyanese people,” Forde said.
The Mayor said that he is still willing to serve, expressing optimism that there will be “justice on this matter”.
Narine, a Staff Sergeant, was disembodied from the reserve with effect from Tuesday, December 13, 2022, for “conduct unbecoming of a soldier”. The Mayor, on Monday, December 12, 2022, was engaged in a civil protest action in Georgetown, during which, he purportedly uttered words the GDF considered to be a promotion of “racial and religious intolerance, as well as political dissonance”.
“Several disparaging comments were made against the Commander in Chief and his government. As a member of the Guyana Defence Force, albeit Regular or Reserve, Mr Narine is required to conduct himself in a manner that upholds the professional image and integrity of the Force,” the Force said on Wednesday night.
Narine and Duncan threw themselves under a vehicle on Monday night to stop the removal of stalls and caravans used by vendors occupying spaces outside of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). According to the government, the vendors and their stalls and caravans prevent the free flow of traffic, inclusive of emergency medical vehicles to the institution. The Opposition has however dubbed the removal as discriminatory, claiming the vendors as pro-opposition supporters.
Earlier this week, opposition-aligned Economist, Elson Low, said that there was “irony” in the fact that the vendors were being removed on the same night President Dr Irfaan Ali announced salary increases for healthcare workers. Low posited that the removal appeared to be a deliberate attempt to prevent the vendors from benefitting from an anticipated increase in sales from health workers.
