Dear Editor,
As we observe another Independence Day in Guyana, there is nothing to celebrate. Our whole nation is under national mourning from a tragic fire that snuffed out innocent young lives at Mahdia’s student dormitory. The nation reels from this shocking tragedy, and as we give every word of hope and faith to families, we know they will never recover from their broken, bleeding hearts. The President has rightly decided to mute the usual Independence Day celebrations as we are in great lamentation of the loss of young, loved ones. Cabinet support to each family is quite admirable.
Our children’s dormitory at Mahdia did not have smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, sprinkler systems, adequate house mothers, proper security systems and facilities, no proper fire prevention and firefighting facilities, yet our Government refuse to renegotiate a bad oil contract. Instead, they file appeal against a case that Guyana won against the mighty imperialist Exxon. The colony won, but our Government says, no we don’t want to win, let massa win. The AG and VP raced to announce appeals. So what is there to celebrate this Independence Day?
This Independence Day finds us mourning our children whose dreams have been burnt, lives snuffed out, and futures have been extinguished. It is very sad. In the same way, the hopes and dreams of our children’s future are going up in flames as our PPP Government and Opposition PNC have given over our independence to Exxon to dictate our future. Our Government is more concerned about the health, security, and safety of Exxon and their shareholders’ bank accounts rather than the health, safety, security, and environmental protection of its own nation. There is nothing to celebrate, but much to lament!
Sincerely,
M. Singh
