Rajmatti ‘Sita’ Ramjattan is a woman who has supported her husband’s political endeavours for the entire twenty-two-years of their marriage, and it is something she has not regretted.
When she met Khemraj Ramjattan, he was a member of the PPP/C and in 2005 when he and Raphael Trotman and others decided to form their own political party she supported him, as for years she had felt that he should have broken away from the ruling party.
She does not want to discuss the reason, but she revealed to the Sunday Stabroek that she feels that with the Alliance For Change (AFC) her husband can better serve the country. And so even though being a part of a new political movement meant that her husband would have been forced to be away from home more, Mrs Ramjattan said that it was a sacrifice she was willing to make.
Sitting in her office in her husband’s King Street law firm, Mrs Ramjattan had no qualms about talking about her life, her husband and why she believes that he and the AFC party can better serve the country with the new dispensation in parliament. While she expected that the AFC, who had her husband as its presidential candidate, would have done much better at the November 28 polls, she is optimistic that with a minority government Guyanese will better be served. The party gained two more seats than the five it won in 2006 and back then Mrs Ramjattan said she also felt that the party would have done better.
Growing up
Mrs Ramjattan was born in Anna Catherina but grew up in Leonora where she described her childhood days as fun with her six siblings. But being the eldest she said she was forced to take on some of the responsibilities in the home.
And perhaps it was the fact that she had to assist in caring for her twin siblings – one later died – and from an early age had learnt to cook and take care of the house, Mrs Ramjattan was able to slip comfortably into the role of being the wife of a very busy husband.
She attended Leonora Primary and Secondary Schools and in her final years of secondary school she learnt typing and shorthand.
Interestingly her first job was in the office of the then Commissioner of Police Laurie Lewis, where she worked as one of his secretaries for three years. She later moved on to the Civil Aviation Department, and the last place she worked was at Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) before joining her husband’s office a few years ago.
More interestingly though, was how she met the young Khemraj Ramjattan and she still blushes when she talks about the meeting, even though she firmly states that it was not “love at first sight for me, but I think it was love at first sight for him.”
The then 24-year-old Mrs Ramjattan was a witness testifying in a murder case, and Mr Ramjattan was the prosecutor. She recalls that the meeting happened in the last week of May 1987, and she recalled that she overheard Mr Ramjattan asking one of his colleagues, “Boy who is she?” in reference to her, and she knows he was smitten.
And while she maintains she was not smitten immediately, with a little laugh she said she must have given him her number as their acquaintance began with telephone conversations and they then dated for two-and-a-half years before tying the knot.
They were married by Hindu rites but she said they made sure they did “the legal thing first.”
Before they got married Khemraj Ramjattan opened his private practice, and Mrs Ramjattan said when the first of their two sons – Vikash – was born the year after they got married, she quit her job at DDL to become a stay-at-home mom. Their second, Divesh, was born three years later.
Quitting her job was not an easy decision, Mrs Ramjattan revealed, but she said she eventually learned to enjoy taking care of her sons and the home.
In fact it is only three-and-a-half years since she returned to being a member of the working population and this time it is in her husband’s office, which she manages.
And Christmas was always a big time in the family home with family and friends visiting from overseas. Mrs Ramjattan decorated their Campbellville home about a month before December 25, as she said it gave her more time to enjoy the season. But this year was somewhat different as there are no decorations in the house as Mrs Ramjattan said she was not feeling it, and with the boys all grown up the urge was not there. But on Christmas Day they would still have the relatives over and the mood would be festive.
‘Wise decision’
Mrs Ramjattan told the Sunday Stabroek that her husband made a very wise decision to break away from the PPP/C and he had her full support in the move. She recalled that she was there from day one when the discussions about the birth of the AFC started. Those discussions begun in England during visits by both Ramjattan and Trotman and she had accompanied her husband.
While she was there in 2006 Mrs Ramjattan said because the party was very young she was not actively involved on the campaign trail, but this time around she was out and about and she has no regrets.
The negative comments made about her husband during the campaign do not make her bitter nor do they affect her since she said she knows who he is.
“He is a man of principle, he is well respected and I know who he is,” she told the Sunday Stabroek.
She said now their sons (21 and 18) are affected by what was said or may be said as they know he is an honest politician and one who has integrity.
Ramjattan was accused of various things by members of the PPP/C.
“He does his work honestly, and so I have nothing to worry about,” said Mrs Ramjattan of her husband.
Her wish is that now the political parties should work together to move Guyana forward. She knows that the AFC has an important role to play but is confident that her husband and the others in the party will put Guyana first.
“They would work very hard,” she said.
