(Taken from the January 29th, 1993 edition of Stabroek News)
(In honour of the late SN columnist Arthur Allan Fenty, who authored a column on Fridays in this newspaper for 30 years, Stabroek News will be running some of his earliest contributions. We start today with his first ever column.)
Frankly speaking, one is quite expectant now that “change” has come about. Whichever Party one supported, now that there is the reality of a new government the average Guyanese awaits development with unabated interest. Unfortunately, many will expect these developments to be much earlier than can be reasonable. But again, are there not many who can claim they’ve been twenty-eight years too long?
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The PNC has to be continuously careful of every negative allegation it makes about this three-month old government. Because after twenty-eight years, any allegation now can be countered by pointing to something worse (allegedly) perpetrated by their past administration. Careful as you go!
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And I ponder, with controlled amusement, every time I hear the former administration lay claim to any achievement or potential achievement the PPP/Civic tries to take credit for. You know, the “E.R.P” results; the old Agreements concluded; SIMAP; etc etc. Up to October last, just who was in a position to “run things?” Who else could have promoted (or stifled) development?
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The Question of “race” being alive and well, Nattie is amused by just how many of his Afro-friends now claim to have “some Indian” in them. (Some Afro people’s grandmothers and great-grandfathers had “straight-straight hair”! and Nattie’s nephew, “D.J. Dread Locks“ is changing his professional name to “D.J Khrishna.” Then there is this promoter who wants to stage another show at the National Park featuring both Kanchan and Maxi Priest – together in concert!!
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I shuddered when TUF’s Manzoor Nadir calculated and explained how much per head each Guyanese owes as a result of our current national debt. If you want to distress yourself “work out” how much you and each of your children owe the outside world. And that’s beside what you owe right here – normally.
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No wonder it’s great to be Chairman of the Board of the National Bank of Industry and Commerce (NBIC). The non-executive Directors this year will share fees of $1.5M and I am reliably informed the chairman takes home more than an equal share of this.
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I trust that new Speaker of the Parliament Mr. Jagan, will be firm, well-versed and up-to-date on all House rules and technicalities. To me, he allowed former Speaker … now PNC front bencher … Mr. Narain, to do his own thing at the first business session. Don’t be shy, lenient or compromising. Just be proper and procedurally correct.
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I have a great and genuine lamentation. Though I know that mere oratory or rhetoric can’t develop this country; that substance and action cannot be replaced by fine language or attractive articulation, I have grave difficulty in advising my student daughter which Minister(s) of the new Administration to try to emulate, in terms of language – corrections and delivery; pronunciation, diction and grammar etc., etc. I implore the new Ministers and M.P.’s please “brush up” on the language, prepare well then “check against delivery.” There is hope, so far, for Ministers Teixeira, Nagamootoo and Jeffrey and, of course Janet Jagan should speak more. My daughter, who is working on her English, is listening!
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Curious isn’t it? Americans seemed to be proud of the fact that last November’s voter turn-out was fifty-five percent (55%). It means that 45% of eligible voters did not bother to vote! This translates to mean that millions of Americans stayed away from exercising their right to choose. And this in the world’s leading democracy!
