Dear Editor,
Earlier today, I saw arrest of the former Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Luncheon, unfold on social media. After Dr Luncheon’s arrest, former President, Bharrat Jagdeo, was also arrested by the Special Organized Crime Unit, SOCU.
Were these actions necessary for the imposition of charges? Or were they intended to drive fear into the opposition ranks? In reality, the events of today have the appearance of a political show of force. Given the nature of Guyana’s fractured polity, sagacity should have been the watchword of SOCU.
There has been a lot of chatter around SOCU; this entity does not enjoy credibility among a wide cross-section of the population, particularly opposition supporters.
It is perceived as the political witch-hunting unit of the governing regime. This is an indictment of the organization and the people who are part of its institutional make-up, Sam Sittlington notwithstanding. Greater efforts should have been made to have people of unimpeachable integrity in this unit (which in Guyana’s climate, usually means no one from the country itself and now, post recent elections, no one from the ABC countries).
It is inevitable that there will be consequences if laws were broken by members of the previous administration. However, the imposition of charges and prosecution must be done in a manner that is acceptable, and the motives of the government must be beyond reproach. Otherwise, the narrative that the government is neutering the opposition so that it can impose its hegemony will gain further currency. Guyana needs better. Guyana deserves better.
Yours faithfully,
Kowlasar Misir
Canada
