President David Granger should exert his leadership and ensure that there is a recount of ballots and should take an example from the late President Desmond Hoyte and reach out to the PPP/C to work together, says former PPP/C Finance Minister and veteran politician Asgar Ally.
“As an economist and a former finance minister, I think that President Granger has to take charge of his party. How can you agree with the CARICOM to count the votes and have a member of your party stop them from counting the votes?” Ally told Stabroek News in an interview last Friday.
”Any prime minister, anywhere in this world, if his member disagrees with him will have to be sent home. I don’t understand why President Granger don’t put his foot down and let the votes be counted…,” he added.
Almost four weeks after the March 2 general and regional elections, a winner is yet to be officially declared. With the vote count for Region Four marred in controversy, the PPP/C and other contesting parties are accusing the elections commission of electoral fraud in favour of a victory for the incumbent APNU+AFC.
Throughout the interview, Ally stressed that his views were in no way an attack on anyone. “This is not a personal attack on anyone, so I want it known that there is no vitriol. My views are simply put because I want the nation to know how we got here and how it should be dealt with going forward,” the former minister said, as he gave an extensive personal insight into the political history of this country.
Having lived in Jamaica for decades, before returning home in the early 1990s to serve, Ally said that Guyana is in a very critical state now politically, and coupled with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, would make the country unlivable for many and set it back years developmentally, if the situation is not addressed soonest.
“The country is suffering because there is no stability in the country. In my view, the PPP and the APNU/AFC have to work together. They have to work for Guyana. You cannot have disputes over the elections in such a blatant manner. When that happens, the people suffer, the country suffers and the country is put back,” he said.
“When I look at this, it hurts me to see all the effort Desmond Hoyte and [late President] Dr [Cheddi] Jagan just wasted. Dr Jagan gave me a free hand, Hoyte supported it and [former President Bharrat] Jagdeo supported it and Guyana did make progress. Why waste that?” he questioned.
Ally, who fell out with the then PPP/C government in 1994 paving the way for Jagdeo to become Finance Minister, said that from analysis of this country’s economy, it has the potential to be a model to the world economically if its oil resources are used correctly. But he said that with no vision and political instability, there will be an increase in poverty.
‘Recession’
Already, he said that the evidence shows that the reserves at the central bank are “not healthy” and “the growth for going forward is not very much.”
Pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has shaken many nations’ economies and claimed thousands of lives, Ally believes that a global recession is imminent.
“There will be recession coming in…a big recession is coming. The world economy is contracting by nearly 30 per cent and Guyana is doing nothing to even cushion this future impact. That means we will have to climb out of that and grow again. Most of the developing countries that find oil end up with the Dutch disease. I don’t see Guyana being anything but facing a similar fate unless the PPP/C and PNC work together. They have to be mature and show the world that we can move Guyana forward like all the other Caribbean countries; Barbados; Jamaica; Trinidad and Tobago…,” he said.
“Today, Guyana is in the best position if its political problems are resolved to move forward in leaps and bounds. We have less than one million people and can make this work. What Hoyte, Jagan and Jagdeo did give was gave us a foothold to progress. This government was in power for five years and not much has been achieved. We can’t go back to the old days. We have to discuss how Guyana got here, where we are coming from, and work out solutions,” he added.
Ally, who had at one time formed a political party to challenge the PPP/C and PMC, said that many might be shocked that he lauds President Hoyte while serving another party but it only demonstrates the calibre of man Hoyte was.
“We have to remember and go back to our history. In previous years, between the 60s to the 90s, one party was in power and there wasn’t free and fair elections. In 1985, Hoyte assumed power following [President Forbes] Burnham’s death. He took over the country and the economy was in a bad state. Hoyte began to restructure and get it in groove. He went to the IMF [International Monetary Fund] and got a programme, the IMF standby arrangement it was called. He began to work on that and then Hoyte, as a good president; one of the better ones we have had, liberalised the economy. He turned around the Guyana economy and free it up; no exchange controls. He gave us a market economy instead of a state planned economy; the next thing to do was to get over what happened in the past and the racial divide,” Ally said.
“When he come to power, he returned some of the old stalwarts to positions and he appointed Joe Singh over Granger in the army because he wanted to turn a new leaf. Hoyte was bold and did what he had to. You had to be brave to do what he did and it came from a system that was different. He led by example and [took] the bull by the horn,” he added.
Ally said that Jagan, at the same time, began agitating for free and fair elections because he didn’t want to go over the past again. He had to go Washington and he took Ally with him for that meeting.
“I was at the Bank of Jamaica at the time and we went to see them. We saw (late US Senator) Ted Kennedy and others and Dr Jagan explained the problems in Guyana. He spoke to the Carter (Center) and they led a team to Guyana and had discussions with Hoyte and both sides agreed to models. Among changes for a free and fair elections was that counting votes would be at the polling place and observers to observe the process. Hoyte did that. In October 1992, the PPP won and assumed power. I became Minister of Finance. I was able to take over the IMF programme…we renegotiated with the World Bank, European Union, IMF…name it. And Hoyte was Opposition leader but used to be respectful and supportive of measures that would benefit this county He was a patriot that Desmond Hoyte. He told me, ‘Asgar do your best for the country’. They had differences yes because in politics you will. But Hoyte loved this country,” he said.
According to Ally, up to the late 1990s, when Jagdeo first took office, “Hoyte and Jagdeo would talk together.”
“Hoyte always had the heart of the country. He said not what is good for the PPP or PNC, it is for country. He was able to take this country out of the doldrums.”
Scourge
Fast forward to the present day, where the country had an election since March 2nd and results have not been declared as yet, Ally said he believes it would not happen under a Hoyte government and he blames Granger for poor leadership.
He said with this election came the decades-old scourge of active racism and he believes that the president has to find a way to bridge the divide.
“Hoyte was called Desmond Persaud and Cheddi was called Cheddi Blackman. That is what you need today. You need an Afro-Guyanese leader that is respected by the Indians and vice versa. You don’t see this analysis like that today. You had a president who worked with the PPP and [they were] able to agree to much. You will have political banter but you can’t take that to an extent where it mashes up the country,” he stressed.
“We should return to discussion and compromise. Granger has to sit back and think. Go to the count. What else can they do if you can count and prove that you win? If that is the case, fine but the country cannot remain in this state,” he said.
Asked if he believes that the problem will be resolved after a recount, whichever side wins, Ally shrugged his shoulder and then said no. He explained his answer, saying that while a fair recount would address the issue of a legitimate government, the deeper issue of racism in Guyana will still be hovering.
“The problem is deep, deep, deep, deep. This is just a symptom of the problem. Racism is an albatross around the neck of Guyana that has to be addressed. Simply put, the PNC controls half the country and the PPP the other half. We may try to fool ourselves but that is it. So unless these two halves work together, we will be divided and the country will remain stagnant and never realise her true potential,” he said.
“Hoyte had set the example how the PPP and the PNC will work together. Now the two men here don’t meet. Jagdeo wants to talk but it seems Granger won’t. We have to become more mature and be careful about how we use this race issue. This dispute about the elections has now turned into a race problem. Why should either the PPP or PNC feel that everyone don’t have rights. We have to respect one another. Whoever is in power must look out for the rights and needs of the other 50 per cent. That is the culture which Hoyte was setting up,” he added.
