The big con job

THE EDITOR: A fallacy is a misconception, a delusion, an illusion, mistaken belief, falsehood, and the opposite of truth.

Why am I bringing this up? To put readers on their guard that two of the main pillars of holding society together are not the solid foundational support they think they are but only a hollow echo of the promise they appear to hold.

These two pillars are the rule of law and democracy.

The rule of law:

I have written on the theoretical underpinnings of the rule of law before, but in reality it is nothing more than an “honour code.” The rule of law is not backed by any power, or any state agreement on what it is. It means, in the words of Lord Bingham, “nothing more than hooray for our side.”

The rule of law is: "A concept of moral, legal and political 'rules' designed by the State and its agents to fool the people into thinking that the State and its agents are constrained from succumbing to corruption and human stupidity" (my definition).

In other words:

* The person using the words mean nothing more than his side of the issue has apparently scored a point (minor or otherwise). It is why both sides of the political divide/legal issue can simultaneously claim victory for the rule of law, no matter the outcome of the issue.

* The rule of law cannot be enforced. Why? Simply because the rule of law has no standard definition. Instead, it has guidelines to state what the rule of law ought to be, but yet, these guidelines are frequently ignored by states the world over. It is why a person on remand can be waiting up to 17 years for a fair trial, or a judge take 16 years to deliver a verdict – in breach of the guidelines that the law must be speedily enforced and respect fundamental human rights (Bingham, 2010).

* The rule of law can be breached with impunity because it can’t be enforced. Hence, governments and their various arms can bend, twist, wrench, break and even ignore the rule of law.

* Make no mistake, it is almost always governments that abuse the rule of law. The abuse is related to the exercise of power, or, more specifically, an over-reach for power.

* Abuse of the rule of law always involves breaching the human rights of someone, somewhere. There is always a victim, as it means law is applied unevenly.

A pool party in Cocorite with 40 plus individuals with no face masks results in police warnings, yet 50 plus fines were issued in Mayaro for the same offence (Express 09/09/2020). The rule of law given the middle finger, much the same way as when an AG’s children (allegedly) were photographed handling high-powered rifles.

Democracy:

For those who live under the misconception that they live in a democratic state, the following may make them blink in astonishment.

What is the extent of your involvement in choosing your leaders? Do you really think that you choose your leaders? Think again:

* Candidates for elections are chosen by the political parties. Both at general elections and local elections.

* You vote for people whom you did not choose.

* You elect a government for five years, during which it makes all decisions “on your behalf.” Decisions need not be within the rule of law.

* You have no say in those decisions, even at the local government level.

* The Prime Minister is the supreme leader. He controls almost every aspect of government, directly and indirectly, just because he is the Prime Minister. He exerts his will as a matter of fact, and need not follow the rule of law.

* If you disagree, your only option is an expensive judicial review in the courts. Even then, he can stymie, stall, and use state resources to urinate all over your back, all the while calling it rain.

Having closely and cynically (admittedly) examined these two concepts, I realised they are merely ideological underpinnings created to soothe the masses. They have worked for centuries.

MOHAN RAMCHARAN

via e-mail