Dear Editor,
National Leaders should never take our people for granted. With the advent of technology and social media platforms, information is easily accessible to everyone, to citizens everywhere.
Last Wednesday, January 18, 2023, Mr. Irfaan Ali conducted an outreach in the Yarrowkabra community on the Linden/ Soesdyke Highway. What stood out for me is the boldness of a female resident, clearly a critical thinker who, armed with information, asked questions pertinent to the standard of living faced by ordinary Guyanese. The well-informed and polite citizen asked “we have oil, billions of dollars’ worth of oil and yet people are given $25,000. …. why can’t we get better?”
Rather than being a leader who listens to what people have to say, Mr. Ali in his usual arrogant and abusive manner did not allow her to complete her questions but interjected and went off on his usual tirade about the Coalition government’s performance during 2015 to 2020. It is sad and painful when leaders try to score cheap political points by not presenting the context and the whole truth to constituents.
Editor, I publicly applaud that young woman for her boldness to challenge Mr. Ali about the spending of our oil wealth. I believe Guyana has many more like her, but because of the spirit of fear and intimidation perpetuated over this nation by the PPP/C, many are afraid to stand up for their rights, lest they share a similar fate of being dismissed from their jobs like Ms. Ellis from Mocha Arcadia. I say to Guyanese, it is your constitutional right to speak freely. Be bold and speak truth to power.
Sincerely,
Annette Ferguson
Member of Parliament
