While Guyana has come a far way since it became an independent state 43 years ago, the country is now more divided than ever, according to the PNCR. In a message to mark the 43rd independence anniversary, the main opposition party quoted from the recent report by Gay McDougal, the UN Independent Expert on Minority, to illustrate the division.
According to the party, quoting from the report was not intended to place emphasis on the negative aspects of the country’s development but rather it was an “attempt to make us all recognize that if we are to develop in the context of the needs and requirements of the 21st Century, we must rediscover that consensus which was recognized at the time of independence and let it serve as a factor for resumed and expanded developments.”
The party added that citizens will have to rekindle the spirit of co-operation among themselves and the ethic of nation building.
The PNCR pledged to work with all “responsible and reliable forces whose aim is to forge a national consensus, which can facilitate the resolution of the many known problems which have bedeviled our society and stymied our development.”
In particular, the party said it will be supportive of all plans and programmes that seek to bring to an end “the suffocating and effective Westminster form of governance which has not only slowed our development but also generated conflict and ethnic division.”
And should Guyana present the world with an image of a united, reconciled, purposeful and serious nation, the PNCR said it is confident that the country would not encounter difficulties “in attracting credible investments, which can boost economic development and provide greater opportunities for expanded employment.
“A prosperous economy can be the stimulus for the spiritual, social and cultural rebirth of the nation. We must keep this vision in mind, even as we navigate one of the most testing economic crises the nation has known.”
Guided by our experience, let us therefore celebrate the 43rd anniversary of our independence, while resolving to make this a more prosperous and secure nation, it added.