Dear Editor,
One wonders how Mr Sasenarine Singh (‘No one party can be trusted to plan for the people’s future…’ SN, February 21) proposes that we have a hung parliament when as he himself acknowledges the PPP is capable of bringing out the masses. The dynamics of the equation are that for there to be a coalition with the current actors, the PPP votes have to be split by the AFC; this is not very likely in spite of the Ramjattan appeal. As it stands the AFC is more likely to split the less united PNC, racial politics being alive and well in Guyana with Indians being a more cohesive group. It is difficult given the PPP stranglehold on the Indian psyche which perceives the PNC as the enemy of the Indian because it is presented as such, will be able to split the Indian vote. While this may have been more of a possibility under Desmond Hoyte, his successor has been ineffective in making the party attractive even to Africans. There is still no Indian force or any other party that is sufficiently multiracial which is seriously working towards gaining political power in Guyana by posing a threat to the PPP. The PPP is guaranteed therefore to remain in power with a fragmented opposition. The stronger the AFC becomes the better the PPP chances of remaining in power.
With the PPP’s ability to mobilize and with it holding the machinery for elections there will be no coalition, only a PPP victory and domination again come 2011. As a matter of fact, the PPP only needs to render assistance clandestinely to the AFC through funding and other measures to guarantee themselves success. A PPP victory means no change in the constitution as Dr Jagdeo and the boys are more comfortable with it now they are holding the reins of power. It made good conversation against the PNC prior to 1992, but is no longer a ‘bad thing’ now that they are in power. Obviously then the problem is not the constitution, it is how either they interpret it or govern by it. It is the evil of man that corrupts constitutions not the other way around.
Recognising that any effective coalition govern-ment will require a PPP split, hard though the thought of that is, I support the need for good governance if Guyana is to advance as a nation. I support the various calls for mutual respect and an end to racial opportunism.
My point of departure from Mr Singh further deepens, for with all his condemnation of President Jagdeo and his recognition of the abysmal failure of the PPP he is still making excuses for the party.
Jagdeo has a cabinet and the party has always operated from the corridors of Freedom House where the executive meets. He is not solely accountable, and even if the buck stops with him it does not mean that the party and the cabinet are less guilty, unless, of course, Mr Singh is applying a different analytical tool than the one customarily used for analyzing PNC and PPP leaders. Customarily we understood Burnham to be ‘bad’ and by extension this reflected on the PNC, except of course those members who debunked the PNC and served the interest of the PPP as in the case of Jeffrey and others.
While it is good that more of us are finally able to admit, at least in part, that the head of a PPP government is failing miserably, it is deceptive and perhaps self-serving to attempt to excuse others and blame only Jagdeo.
It is far from the whole truth. Supporters condoned and gave support to and loved what he was doing until Mrs Jagan died, when it seemed like the old guard believed it was time for one of them to take over.
True, Mrs Jagan handpicked him and helped to prop him up for years as he presided over the mismanagement of our country and embarked on a campaign to get back at the PNC for its 28 years. This is and was counterproductive and has been his downfall, because instead of excelling in his field of economics with the blessing and support he received as a fresh young entrant into politics, young Jagdeo betrayed the goodwill of supporters, the nation and Dr Jagan.
Mr Singh chooses to be silent on the divisive policies of the party as a hindrance to development and progress. These are factors that any serious thinker cannot ignore. The practice of racial divisiveness in our politics must be expounded as this too is the driving force behind the decline we face, and the party in power is representative of that racial divisiveness. Policies have been created to suppress and not develop the nation as a whole. Guyana will never survive like that.
Today when we reflect on the PNC and draw compar-isons it is clearly evident that the collective good of the nation was more of a priority than suppression of any one group.
The PNC just made some bad steps along the way. They were also challenged by the worst ever oil crisis of the ’70s which placed a toll on foreign exchange, the cost of living and production. These effects were even worse than the subsequent effects of the global recession and international challenges the Jagdeo regime now faces and finds it convenient to hide behind.
As a people and nation we have spoken comfortably for years about the things the PNC did wrong. We never acknowledge the good, and that has been our failing which has led to the nation being saddled with a corrupt regime that we feel is the only hope for us and Guyana. We are evidently even fearful of identifying what we see and experience on a daily basis. For some it is about loyalty and being conditioned not to acknowledge reality.
Reference is only made to the PNC debt, but no reference is made to the PPP government debt and its excesses. Jagdeo alone has spent a very large sum in three years just travelling the globe. Added together this is a big betrayal of our people and the promises that we looked for. It is certainly not what we expected after the years spent chastising the PNC for their gross expenditure and debt. Again when we look at the PPP, projects are substandard although costing an astronomical sum, and no one is held accountable for raping the coffers.
Some contractors are fly-by-night czars who siphon off money; crime is out of control, our foreign policy is a nightmare and President Jagdeo is the greatest embarrassment to the government.
The nation only experienced growth follow-ing Mr Hoyte’s ERP and this was an opportunity for returning Guyana to economic viability that was squandered by the politics of greed and divisiveness, not forgetting incompetent leaders who chose not to tap into the human resources and skills available and politicians who were so accustomed to opposing and destroying that when it was time to build they missed the opportunity and good will.
As happens in the USA , Canada and England, where we are all scattered we the people have to hold each ruler and party accountable and we can only do so by having strong institutions of stature, independent regulatory bodies and the separation of powers. We have to admit that the PPP party needs a lesson, a harsh one that will force them to good governance. Stalwarts like Moses Nagamootoo and Navin Chandarpal need to do something before the label of the PPP being the worst thing that could happen to Guyana becomes indelible in the minds of all. Lots of harsh cold facts are available and no amount of propaganda can change the way the PPP is now seen as a result of President Jagdeo. He is guilty in so far as he is a symbol of what we failed to admit, embraced over the years and took for granted.
Were we to take away the emotion, opinions and object-ively examine Guyana’s major political parties using the same methods for both, many shocks would be forthcoming.
Yours faithfully,
Dennis Arjune