Dear Editor,
The tale of the son of Mr. Reepu Daman Persaud’s sudden appearance as the “businessman” that will be supplying the government with BMWs for CWC cries out for the presence of someone like Eusi Kwayana in this country. The story of how the children of the PPP and the acolytes are milking the resources of Guyana is a research field that must be covered by opposition parties and human rights organizations. Before I go further, how interesting it is to note that last Friday your paper carried the speech of President Jagdeo in which he directly and confrontationally accused me of rumour-mongering.
The next day, your paper printed a letter from an unsigned writer informing us that the son of Mr. Reepu Daman Persaud is the “businessman” who will be conducting an arrangement with the Government of Guyana to sell BMWs for CWC officials in Guyana. I would appeal to that letter-writer that the next time she/he has important facts like those related to Mr. Persaud’s son not to publish them under an unsigned name but pass the information on to us in the media that will publish them under a real name.
President Jagdeo never acts on information of corruption supplied to him. My honest opinion of Mr. Jagdeo is that he is not interested. In fact, the more exposures you do, the angrier the President gets with you. When he attacked the press during his address to the army, your paper reported that there was laughter in the audience. Who were those military personnel laughing at, President Jagdeo or the media? It couldn’t be the media because some of us in the press have done our work. There is a mountain of evidence of corruption. Recently, I did a Kaieteur News column on a wacky, long-time PPP supporter that a majority of PPP third-level, second-level and first-level PPP leaders cannot stand and could not stand the past thirty years. He works as an aide to Mr. Jagdeo who has the temerity to talk about rumour-mongering by the media.
Back to the children of privilege. Too many times I have lamented on the inaction and misdirected energies of the Guyana Human Rights Association. An inquiry into the methods used to give these offspring of the rulers of Guyana the type of occupations they now possess and the sudden fancy cars they drive is long overdue. I hope Jerome Khan can keep plugging away at the PNC to do an honest day of political research. The speed at which the children of PPP leaders, PPP supporters and their friends get jobs in this country is nothing but a national disgrace. If there is anything worse about the PPP when compared with the PNC it is the use, the massive use, of state resources for the benefit of these children.
Just check and see; as soon as they land the jobs, they begin to drive expensive cars. PPP General Secretary, Donald Ramotar, rushed to pen a reply to me, some time back, about the children of PPP leaders being entitled to the same rights as other citizens. Not only are they entitled to the same rights but it seems they are in possession of privileges that few other children, if any, of ruling politicians in any democratic country receive. I asked Mr. Ramotar in my reply to document for the Guyanese people the type of jobs these offspring have. That will never be done. It cannot be done because it will be one of the most shameful documents a citizen can read. None of these kids work their way up after taking an ordinary job in the public service. They do not accept ordinary jobs, they just fly right up the ladder immediately. Interesting to note that they seem to find positions that are financed by international organizations.
I was amused when President Jagdeo attacked the Americans when he delivered the featured address to the GDF two Thursdays ago. I believe the Americans put more money into the World Bank and the IDB. Without American money, I wonder what will become of the children of privilege in Guyana.
Yours faithfully,
Frederick Kissoon