Dear Editor,
As a citizen of our great and beautiful country, I decided to come out and breathe the magnificence of my country on Nomination Day. I wanted to witness the thrill, the excitement, the euphoria, the peace, the vibrations and motivations to and from the political throngs of various political units.
I watched as the PPP/C contingent arrived at City Hall, with their massive crowd and energized souls. They screamed nothing nasty about anyone, but broadcast loudly the love for their leader and their party, as any other. Their marshall controlled the crowds proudly and with discipline. None jumped City Hall’s fence or jumped the gate. The leaders stood by the gate as gentlemen and ladies of character, with their supporters screaming and enjoying their moment. The leaders walked into City Hall cool, brave and with confidence. They returned to Freedom House with the frenzy and joy they had left. I listened to the presentations and then left to return to City Hall.
I waited by the main gate in Regent Street. Then came the AFC, with their few hundred supporters, being the smallest of the big political power-brokers. I counted about two hundred people, but they were loud in praising their mission and their leader, and cussing down President Jagdeo and Ramotar. One AFC man kept coming near my ears screaming, as if I could switch from a party I love to the AFC. If I had been a supporter, because of his childish behaviour, I would have fired the AFC. Such kinds of mass hysteria do indeed make some people behave amateurish and stupidly, if I may say so. Others chatted with me, and we shared views and respect, while some offered me a t-shirt of the AFC, which I declined. My friend Moses Nagamootoo waved on seeing me and raised a clenched fist. I acknowledged him.
Their leaders stood also by the entrance and waved to their supporters, and walked in a dignified manner. They departed with their music.
A few brave small parties or persons entered without fanfare and without even being noticed. Some said hello and I acknowledged them. I continued to stand and enjoy our good fortune of peace and harmony blessed with the freedom to choose.
Amidst loud music, fervour and power, APNU approached. The crying, wailing, music and screaming were deafening, but to the spectators waiting for them and themselves, it was like the arrival of the gods. Some in City Hall near the fence got excited on seeing Mr Corbin and Mr Granger; one lady started an Elvis Presley kind of gyration for about ten minutes, and another called for a photo of Granger from inside the City Hall fence. Some unfortunately scaled the fence.
The gyrations on the road continued for quite a while, and a few taunted me, or were shouting about Ramotar being corrupt (poor man never had public office other than being an MP). But Ramotar and President Jagdeo got some good public cuss-out in the usual Guyanese political style to which we are accustomed, and I found it entertaining and interesting as being part of our political culture.
As Granger and Corbin with Roopnaraine and others approached the entrance gate, the crowd of supporters pressed in on them. It was obvious that the leaders lost control of the crowd, as pushing came from the rear, maybe not realizing they were supposed to stop, and the crowd like a sea caused a mad rush into City Hall, and all who should have stayed outside wanted to be in the compound, preventing the mass of supporters on the road from seeing their leaders. The screaming and the senseless noise from the unruly crowd caused APNU to lose much in terms of decorum and wisdom, as opposed to the example set by the late great Hugh Desmond Hoyte, who once walked into City Hall with few near him, most elegantly, to hand in his list of nominations. Are those days truly gone from the PNC/APNU? If so, then it is very sad indeed. Granger had to squeeze himself on the balcony to wave to the people, and if I am not wrong, he recognized me at the gate and waved at me also, and I reciprocated. As a free thinker I wish to state that I personally see Mr Granger as a gentleman. Even my hate for the PNC went with the arrival of Desmond Hoyte as its leader.
I believe the marshals who were responsible for crowd control failed APNU, and caused a loss of respect for the party despite what the spokesperson may say, as I was there. The marshals should have had a cut-off of movement to allow the leaders to stand at the entrance and wave, and the crowds would have reciprocated. They should have entered City Hall in a more dignified way, instead of being pushed in without control. I was there, I saw it.
If the marshals had been sharp and organized like the PPP/C’s marshall, they could have taken control and ejected or educated the few who were misbehaving. Some there were spectators, and may have been sitting on the fence, waiting to decide. The supporters did APNU a great disservice and the party needs to deal condignly with the marshals who were supposed to ensure the supporters did not taunt any spectators or passers-by on the road.
Yours faithfully,
Roshan Khan
