Dear Editor,
We here in Guyana have been baptized in a form of politics that is antithetical to our best collective interest.
This form of politics has had variations over the past 56 years. In fact even before independence with the formation of the People’s Progressive Party and later the People’s National Congress local politics was birthed in a particular context which lay the foundation for where we find ourselves today. Politics is the tool that has been created, used, misused, and abused to give persons the pathway to government.
The attitude, beliefs and values which underpin the operation of our brand of politics have disintegrated over time. As the stakes become higher and the brain drain continues, the behaviour of politicians, voters, and those who lobby the politicians has disintegrated.
A lot of us view politics as a dirty game that no sane person would and should get involved in as it muddies all those involved. We were taught and we have bought into this perception that politics is more important than governance. We have spent way too much time on politics and very little on the way our country has actually been governed.
Please hear me out. I am not saying that politics is not important. Though it may be viewed that politics occurs where people disagree about the distribution of goods, benefits, or statuses and have at least some procedures for the resolution of such disagreements, politics has evolved to now mean what we term politricks which is characterized by dishonesty or self-interest, the use of underhand methods to achieve political ends and the use of political power for nefarious means. Politicians are regarded as self-serving people that say anything you want to hear just to get elected and then do the opposite of what voters asked for and expect, therefore tricking them.
Now we have a One Guyana Policy, a policy that only one section of our population is likely to buy into.
Again where does that leave us, where does that leave our future generations? Where do we go from here? The first words out of the opposition’s mouth would be to get rid of the PPP they are no good for Guyana. The other side would just as heartily say we don’t trust nor want to see anyone from the opposition in Government.
So where do we go from here? To some of us, we see our group, our political party advancing, doing well, taking full advantage of all the opportunities that are available and we are feeling good.
To some of us we are seeing our group, our political party not advancing, not doing well, not moving forward, and unable for a myriad of reasons to take full advantage of the opportunities that are available and we do not feel good.
Then there are those of us who really do not care about political parties but cannot understand why we have to struggle so much just to put bread on the table.
Then there are those coming in by the droves from Venezuela, Brazil, Cuba, Russia, the USA, the UK, Canada, China, Barbados, from Syria taking full advantage of our division, utilizing all the loopholes that exist because we are too busy fighting each other and playing politics with each other.
Maybe it is time we say enough of the disunity, enough of the fighting, enough of the racism. If there is space for the Barbadian farmers and the Syrians and the Chinese and the Americans and the British and the Venezuelans and now the Saudis, there must be enough space for us as Guyanese to all benefit from the resources available in this country.
I know my message will not be able to resonate with all but to those of you who this message resonates with I challenge you to reach out. Whether you are Indigenous or Indian, African or Chinese, European or Portuguese or a mix of all as long as your birth certificate is Guyanese let us say enough is enough let us help our leaders to understand that we require and demand something different, something bigger than the petty politics that we have seen and have had to live with for the past 5 decades.
Stop playing politics, let’s work together and govern this country in the best interest of all Guyanese.
Yours faithfully,
Tabitha Sarabo-Halley
Leader
Guyana Nation Builders
