GEORGETOWN – APNU Member of Parliament Sherod Duncan has sounded a sharp warning even as he concedes that President Irfaan Ali is right on one core point: Guyana’s driver’s licensing system cannot be allowed to operate in chaos or corruption. But Duncan says the government’s latest hardline ultimatum risks crossing a dangerous line if legality and due process are treated as afterthoughts.
The MP was reacting to President Ali’s declaration that individuals who obtained driver’s licences through irregular means must surrender them within six weeks or face suspension, prosecution, and public exposure. While Duncan accepts the need to clean up the system, he argues that enforcement by threat is no substitute for enforcement by law. In a pointed public response, he stressed that accountability must extend beyond licence holders to include the officials who enabled corruption in the first place.
Duncan warned that the directive fits a growing pattern of what he described as improvised security governance. He cited the recent tint-enforcement controversy as another example where sweeping announcements were rolled out without clear regulations, written standards, or transparent appeal processes. According to him, these moves create confusion and anxiety among citizens, leaving people unsure of their rights while institutions remain unreformed.
He further cautioned that the government’s push toward digital oversight, including the pending rollout of a national electronic ID system, raises even higher stakes. Duncan said it would be reckless for the state to expand technological monitoring without first fully activating protective legislation such as the Digital ID Act and the Data Protection Act. In his view, enforcement must not race ahead of safeguards.
“If the state is going to use technology to track and regulate citizens,” Duncan wrote, “then it must also meet modern standards of transparency, fairness, and accountability.” He concluded that Guyanese deserve a system built on clear laws and public trust, not one driven by sudden directives, shifting rules, and enforcement that appears to be made up on the fly.
