Dear Editor,
While Guyanese, Caribbean nationals and others in the wider world are anxiously awaiting the outcome of the “no confidence” hearing before the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) there are more important issues which are worrying Guyanese. It seems to me that the PPP will not win the next general elections whenever it is called this year, next year or whenever. The first reason is that the party’s Presidential candidate Irfaan Ali, is not a fit and proper person to hold such an important office. He does not have what it takes to be a Head of State/Head of Government apart from the criminal charges hanging over his head. More importantly the United States Government will not stand by idly and allow a government which has socialist/communist leanings to be in control at this stage when billions of dollars in oil is on the horizon in which the US giant corporation Exxon has control. We should take note that the US is taking a stand in the Venezuela crisis which has brought that once oil rich country to its knees because of Chavez’s and Maduro’s communist policies. The US has gone so far to tell the Russians to back off — remove the troops they sent to Venezuela.
Perhaps I should go back to the root of Guyana’s leftist policy which was initiated by the founder leader of the PPP, Dr. Cheddi Jagan who refused to sever links with Cuba’s Fidel Castro when he (Cheddi) met President Kennedy at the White House in October 1961. In fact Jagan in a brazen move went to Havana and embraced Fidel the following year prompting the US to reluctantly support Forbes Burnham instead. It is clear from Jagan’s action that he was more concerned about promoting communism rather than looking after the interest of Guyanese. As a result of Cheddi’s attitude the US in conjunction with the British changed the electoral system to Proportional Representation (PR) which was responsible for the PPP’s defeat.
After being in the wilderness for 28 long years, the PPP regained power through the assistance of former US President Jimmy Carter, and when Jagan became President he did not seek to change the “Burnham Constitution” which he had criticized because of the elaborate powers given to the Head of State/government. Cheddi’s successors his widow, Janet, Bharrat Jagdeo, a Russian- trained economist, Donald Ramotar, a handpicked leftist, ignored the opportunity to embrace a modified form of capitalism for Guyana to be supported by the USA and to join the ranks of progressive nations. They failed to develop a strategy of sustained social and economic progress for Guyana based on world economics and align with the dominant economic and geo-political order without sacrificing sovereignty or principles.
In addition to the fact/reasons outlined, race is a tremendous setback to the country and this is deep rooted and now a cancer which might take several decades to cure. Several of my friends in the diaspora have been giving their views on a regular basis – identifying the problems – a few of them were so fed up with dishonest and blatant acts of the Jagdeo administration that they supported the AFC which assisted to topple the administration. They regretted because Moses Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan have failed to deliver. It seems to me that at this juncture APNU may not need the assistance of AFC to win the government. In any event the AFC cannot muster the support as they did in 2015.
Yours faithfully,
Oscar Ramjeet
