Dear Editor,
Guyanese recently woke up to the news of another jailbreak. Three men escaped. The Lusignan prison is once again the focus of attention by concerned, law abiding Guyanese.
Compounding the situation even more is the shooting of 10 inmates who were protesting the abominable conditions at the prison.
Reports are that rubber bullets and live rounds and tear gas were used to quell the unrest. Water tenders belonging to the Guyana Fire Service had to be called in to extinguish fires lit by angry prisoners. The situation is reminiscent of the disaster that befell the nation on July 2017 when the Georgetown Prisons went up in flames.
To date, no warning nor danger alert with phone numbers has been issued by law enforcement calling on citizens to be on the lookout and to report any sightings of the escapees.
Mr Khemraj Ramjattan has portfolio responsibility for the Guyana Prison Service but it is becoming increasingly obvious to Guyanese that the Minister continues to be at his wits end, if not clueless insofar as solutions to problems that continue to plague the prison system of Guyana are concerned.
On assuming office, Mr Ramjattan rejected the sound policies he inherited from the previous PPP/C administration that kept the four prison locations secure and habitable with far less resources.
Mr Ramjattan pretending to know it all, dispensed with the security policies of the PPP/C administration and replaced them with adhocracy and a set of hodgepodge directives handed down to him resulting in the current crisis gripping Guyana’s prison system.
All the talk about setting up a Commission of Inquiry into the 2017 fiery debacle at the Georgetown Prisons has come to nought. In fact, there was never any intention to do so. As far as the APNU+AFC government was concerned the COI held in connection with the horrific events in 2016 was enough.
Ramjattan abdicated his responsibility by not pressing for a COI into the destruction of the Georgetown Prisons deemed the worst disaster ever in the history of the Guyana Prison Service.
Once again, deception became the handmaiden of intransigence and administrative laziness on the part of the APNU+ AFC coalition administration.
Talk about dereliction of duty by a cabinet headed by a president that likes to show off his knowledge about security matters, failure to establish a COI in 2017 is an excellent example of gross negligence by the government over which he presides.
From all appearances, COI’s are established as a means to an end, especially when Mr Granger wants to get rid of those he dislikes and undesirables holding key positions within an organization which forms part of the disciplined services.
Make no mistake. The COI’s into the attempted assassination of the president and the Lindo Creek massacre were masquerades aimed at getting rid of certain senior ranks in the Guyana Police Force and Guyana Defence Force and to put in place ranks with whom the Commander-in-Chief was comfortable.
Citizens should not be surprised if one morning or evening they were to be confronted in their yard or in their place of residence by one or two or all three of the escapees. The threat to life, limb and property is real and must not be taken for granted nor underestimated.
The much touted National Security Strategy continues to be held hostage by the Granger administration. The President has a habit of trotting out deceptive and misleading assurances to the public. As recent as September this year he promised that the Combe Report on Security Sector Reform will be released; “I have instructed that he (Jagdeo) be sent a copy of the Report by Colonel Combe and during the month of October after the recess it will be made available to the National Assembly.”
In August, President Granger declared that the report would be “made public once it is presented to the National Assembly.”
Apparently, the security reform plan is still being “studied” by the subset of seat warming security experts ensconced at Cabinet. In the meantime, the crime situation is in a mess and the prisons system continues to rock from crisis to crisis.
Calls for Ramjattan’s dismissal have been made time and again however President Granger is shackled by the Cummingsburg Accord. No AFC cabinet minister can be removed from office lest the coalition administration falls apart. Guyanese must be like Banwarie and ‘bear their chafe.’ 2O20 is the only way out.
In the meanwhile, more and more drugs, improvised weapons and other illegal items are pouring into the prisons. Bribable and corruptible Prison Officers are complicit.
Mr.Granger in an interview in September this year was quoted as saying; “… at the heart of the problem are of course the quality of manpower; and I believe the Minister of Public Security is working on… and recruiting suitable type persons that would not be susceptible to bribery and corruption.”
This statement is a clear indication that Mr Granger is sailing while Mr Ramjattan is sleeping. They are both oblivious to the fact that the security situation in the country is becoming more and more unmanageable.
In the wider society, despite assurances when in opposition, that they would snuff out criminal networks engaging in human trafficking, gun running and drug smuggling, on a daily basis massive amounts of cocaine are found in lumber, vegetables and in the bowels of swallowers.
The loud- mouthed commitments made over the years that government will find the resources to finance the security sector rings hollow.
The APNU+AFC coalition administration must cease its pretence at being a fountain of knowledge on security matters. It must be more inclusive and transparent in its management and administration of the prisons system.
Yours faithfully,
Clement J. Rohee
