Former central executive member of the PNCR Dr Faith Harding has been moving ahead with her Quick Impact Programme (QIP) and one of her major programmes is already under way with the planting of many acres of sorrel at Long Creek which is expected to be exported when reaped.
Dr Harding, who last year lost the race to become the PNCR’s presidential candidate to David Granger through a process she has heavily criticized, told the Sunday Stabroek in a recent interview that she has kept her promise to persons who wanted help.
She said she was approached on the campaign trail by persons in farming communities for assistance to make their livelihoods better – places like Sophia, Buxton, Albion, Corriverton and Alness. Since then she has established QIP.
“I saw many people with their backs against the wall… they just didn’t know why life was the way it was for them; they weren’t getting a chance to bounce upward. Lots of them had land but didn’t know what to do with it and couldn’t get the means by which to move the land to be a powerful resource for them,” she told the Sunday Stabroek.
In Long Creek there were people with extensive lands, and Dr Harding said she observed someone growing sorrel there, and she knew that there are times when there is a great demand for the fruit. Harding said she then got into action and brought the villagers to clear the lands. They have begun to plant 30 acres of sorrel on the land of four owners, but it is being worked by the entire farmers’ group. Member of QIP Tony Vieira donated some sorrel seeds which were given to NARI to plant for seedlings and these were transplanted last week in Long Creek.
Almost the entire community has come out to start the planting, and in turn they would receive food hampers from QIP. The sorrel is expected to be ready to reap in another six months, and the community will against assist with the reaping, and most of it would be dried by NARI. A firm in Mexico has already offered to buy the entire crop and they are also expected to send about 20 pounds of seed which will be planted and they would purchase that also. The crop is expected to yield about 16,000 pounds of sorrel per acre, and it will be ready for shipment by November.
Sorrel will also be grown in Alness, and the seeds sent by the Mexican firm will be planted in that community. At Alness there is also a programme for poultry and fruit and vegetables, and in Corriverton land has been cleared to plant vegetables. A poultry farm will also be established there.
Furthermore, Dr Harding, a psychologist by profession who has worked with the World Bank and the United Nations, said that someone from the Beharry Group of Companies has indicated that they have found a “fantastic hot pepper” which he would like the famers to cultivate for him, and which he would purchase at world market prices. The peppers are expected to be planted in all three areas. At Albion she has established a children‘s farm which is mainly being operated by children, and the proceeds will be given to the children who would give it to their families or purchase school supplies or whatever they wish.
Harding’s work in recent months has been aimed at turning the lands into wealth for the owners, and she has since gotten them together as groups and teams to look at ways to better utilize their land and to involve even those who did not have land. Those without land, she said, must not only be involved in earning, but more importantly they must have what is termed “psychic income, or a feeling of contributing and growing at the same time.”
She also hopes that some of the money that would be made would be returned to the communities to support social programmes for young people.
“I want to make a quick impact in these people’s lives,” Dr Harding said of her programme which came into existence late last year.
The programme also distributes food hampers, clothing, shoes and other items to depressed areas and orphans, with support from an orphans association in Florida.
Soon QIP is expected to establish a ‘wish programme’ for children who are terminally ill which would see the children being granted a wish before they pass away. Dr Harding said she has joined the programme which operates out of Barbados and they have asked her to do it in Guyana.
She hopes to help residents in Sophia involved in hydroponics, which is means of growing vegetables without soil, and as such it does not require a lot of land.
Politics
Meantime, Dr Harding refuses to be referred to as a ‘former’ politician, as in her words she is a “political being.” She said that while she resigned from the PNCR’s executive she is still a member of the party. She had earlier accused the party of not utilizing her services, but she finally called it a day earlier this year after being scoffed at and being the butt of a joke between two female members at a December meeting of the executive.
“I am not active politically… but I am following closely what is happening and I still will try to become president of this country some time – that is not off the table,” Dr Harding said.
However, she said at the moment she is focusing on working with people in communities because she had promised to help them during her campaign, and she meant to keep that promise. She disclosed that she took 40% of her salary last year to help those in need, especially in Sophia where she is focusing on the social needs of the residents.
She said that if the same mechanism was in place that was used in the last PNCR presidential candidates’ race, she would not be taking part, and if it became necessary she may form her own political party. She said while this might be a challenge it would be great fun and she feels people “are very disenchanted with the political parties that we have.”
“I think people are very disenchanted with the way are governing the country right now. Although there is a new dispensation there is so much sour in it, so much negativity that people just want to be away from it…” Dr Harding said.
She said while she still wants to be in politics she would not be part of “all the rancour that is taking place.” She applauded Speaker Raphael Trotman for suggesting to the government that it take members of the opposition when going out into the communities to address flooding.
“That is a great thing, if that could happen it would show that we are a team trying to develop this country, and it will take away all this rancour… Nobody is talking about development; all you are hearing is fighting; all you are seeing is the boys got on gloves; you are not seeing the boys having tools in their hands…” Dr Handing stated.
While not disagreeing with the opposition’s budget cuts, Dr Harding said she does not agree with the manner in which it was done, since she does not know that the public was properly informed. She said instead one is hearing “suspicions” and “maybes” and not the “developmental aspects” but rather “everybody want to fight and it is I could show you that I could stop and I could show you I would carry on regardless.”
“For me I have a developmental agenda, I have always had one and this is why I liked working in post-conflict countries because you are all about getting these countries developed and it is a development agenda to move people out of war into success…” Dr Harding noted.
She said she had hoped with the new dispensation there would have been talks about development, working together without the rancour.
And speaking about contract workers in the public system, Dr Harding said: “We have always had contract workers because the public service salary is so low.” She also said that it takes a long process at times to hire someone in the public sector and if there is no post then you cannot hire someone, and in any case, they have to be hired by the Public Service Commission. The alternative, she said, is to give the person a contract. The combined opposition had cut $150M from the Office of the President’s proposed budgetary allocations for contracted employees, arguing that the salaries of the top 121 contract workers at OP were extraordinarily high.
“As I said there is not enough details; nobody came out and said ten per cent of these contract workers could have got on to the public service system at this salary scale…because the posts were advertised, the commission did not meet and therefore now you make them meet and put these people on, that you have two months to do it,” Dr Harding suggested.
Asked pointedly if she would work with the PPP/C, Dr Harding said that while she would not work for or with the party, she does not rule out working with the government since the government belongs to the people of the nation. She said she does not see herself as being employable and she does not want to work ‘for’ as opposed to ‘with’ as she loves what she is doing.
“What I would say is I should be able to access government programmes for people in the communities, people in neighbourhoods and people in the nation that come to me,” she explained.
She further explained that if land is to be issued she would like to know that the government would not curtail it because she is approaching them.
“That is why I would like to work with them to help these people, but not to work for them in terms of them paying me a salary or anything like that,” she said.
Dr Harding said she has now been accused of becoming a member of the PPP/C and that she got money to do it, which is not true since she just wants to help the nation because it could be so much greater.
