By Vishnu Bisram
Guyanese business icon Dr. Yesu Persaud was recently honoured at a luncheon in Toronto for his personal achievements and contributions to the Guyanese nation and the diaspora. With Dr. Persaud being recently given a doctorate by the University of the West Indies St. Augustine Campus, following a similar one by the University of Warwickshire, two years ago, the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO), in the US and Canada, and several prominent Guyanese in Toronto felt it proper to honour the well-known business tycoon. Yesu is a founding life member of GOPIO, Chairman of GOPIO of Guyana. He was given the Government of India Pravasi Samman Award in 2006 for his achievements and service to the Indian diaspora..
Some 250 individuals, including eminent personalities like Dr. Ian McDonald , Consul General Danny Doobay, and Ashok Ramsaran, Vice President of the US based Gopio International, came out to honor and pay tribute. Among other attendees were former employees of DDL.
The event was organized by several GOPIO branches, Indo-Caribbean Golden Age, and the Guyanese Professional and Business Association. Besides the award presentation and speeches, there was an interlude of classical dance as well as karaoke singing.
The award, as the organizers noted, was presented to Yesu Persaud for the diaspora’s recognition and appreciation for his “life long community service and appreciation of his many years of community service and his continuing efforts in the preservation and promotion of culture”.
Several speakers spoke glowingly of Dr. Persaud reminiscing about his role in the preservation of Indian culture in Guyana as well as the many contributions he has made to business advancement in and the economy of Guyana. They described him as a man of courage willing to take risks in business.
GOPIO Vice President Ramsaran described Yesu as “a truly remarkable person, a man of honour and unwavering integrity”. He also noted that Yesu “is an ardent advocate of noble and worthy causes for the larger good, a humanitarian at heart and in practice, with understanding and unmatched compassion, an authentic, self-sacrificing person of moral character with positive traits that manifest profound respect, a person of enormous talent, an agent of change, with spirited determination, resilience and endurance, a valiant protector and promoter of his culture, with nurturing and sustained beliefs in goodness, self and humanity, an innovator, a motivator and man of action”.
In his own brief remarks, Dr. Persaud noted that his success as a businessman was not instant but developed over several decades through hard work. He told the guests: “We are what we make ourselves”.
He said he is not finished yet with his business goals and plans to pursue more business ventures.
