Dear Editor,
I am addressing these concerns to the APNU+AFC coalition. My many years as a Bridge player have thought me to connect the dots and follow the line of logic. Every fibre in my being tells me that the stopping of the count on Tuesday March 4th and these continuous stalls since then has only one direction and that the charade of establishing a recount at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre is another one. This recount is another in the long line of complicity between the coalition, the public services and Gecom to delay the counting of the votes long enough to swear-in President Granger on a false declaration. I base this on all the circumstances which have led up to this.
I want the coalition to consider the impact which an illegal, unrecognized Government will have on all Guyanese, not only the ones here but away. We started this year with bright sunlight engulfing the Nation, the hopes and dreams for myself and many of my generation of finally seeing the long awaited promise of our potential and planned development of our country, where the wealth accrued would be shared with all its citizens and act as an enticement for the return of the over one million Guyanese and their descendants overseas, some who have never even visited here.
For myself I was willing to give it a few more years before my retirement. Like most Guyanese I have worked my life to be able to retire and enjoy the fruits of my labour, all this now stands to disappear before the eyes of many Guyanese.
Instead of prosperity, we are now faced with an illegal, unrecognized Government, we will be ostracized by the international community, sanctions will be placed on us, and we will in one fell swoop return to the days of shortages and be in a worse position than our neighbours in Venezuela. Persons like myself with ability and something to offer the development of this country will vote once again with our feet, and we will restart a cycle that we should have left behind with the re-establishment of democracy with the help of the Carter Center in 1992. All the gains and credibility which we have earned in our young democracy will have gone, vanished overnight.
I understand the coalition’s concerns of the excesses of the last Government, and I feel your pain. I was with you on the long road and the flourishing functioning of our democracy to have you installed as our present Government. I have many who I called friends within your Cabinet, however you will have a chance again in another 5 years, where I guarantee you that there will be many talking points and with the right approach you will have a chance again for a return to Government even with the possibility of Constitutional reforms. In the meanwhile, I urge you to allow the recount and validation of the results, take your place whatever that may be in Parliament. Let your voices be heard there in a democratic manner and play by the rules provided under our Constitution.
In closing I plead with the coalition to have empathy for all Guyanese, as this road which you have embarked on is fraught with danger and uncertainty. Believe me no good can come of this, the people you are supposed to be representing will suffer the brunt of the actions which will be initiated with a false declaration. The dreams and aspirations of all our people rest in your hands to do the right thing, and there is the distinct possibility that your plans will be short-lived and it will not end nicely for you. Heed the warnings which are being sounded by the international community.
Yours faithfully,
Roy Beepat
